Third Season: The Better Way
by Great Clone
Summary: Literati. Explores from Episode 3x5 onward if things went differently with the whole sprinkler scene. Jess and Rory. Basically, I'm correcting all the wrongs in the third season. JJ undertones, I guess, as well. Lots of dialogue from actual show...
1. Five O'Clock at The Oasis

**Disclaimer: I don't own this, at all.**

**A/N & Summary: **

**-Literati. Takes place in season three, and starts at episode 3.5 foward. This explores what I thought could have happened if Jess didn't leave after he fixed Dwight's spinkler.**

**-Sorry for all of you that are reading my story, "Back." I haven't had any inspiration, and when I was watching my newly bought season three DVD, I thought this would be a good oppurtunity for a new idea...and poof...I think it might be. ) Please read and review! Tell me whether this sucks, or has some potential. Oh, and sorry if it's a little boring and not too good this chapter, I just had to use most of the show's dialogue, so...yeah. It will get better and more exciting. Definitely. **

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Chapter 1- **Five O'Clock**** at the Oasis**

"Whoa! Agh!" Rory shouted, aggravated with the water system currently soaking her. She went over to the sprinkler and tried to turn it off.

"Whoa, gross!" She attempted to twist the bar a couple more times, but gave up and pulled out her pager.

Typing, she said, "Dean, please have your pager with you, please, come on. Dean, come on! Damn you and your Unabomber tendencies! Aw man!"

She ran away from the house, drenched from the sprinkler when she bumped into someone. As she turned around, she became aware of who it was. But what she didn't see was her pager falling off her pants and onto the street.

"Whoa, whoa, slow down," Jess said.

Annoyed, Rory answered rudely, "Get out of my way."

Not to be deterred, he remarked, "I like the new look. It's very Blue Crush."

"Hilarious," she said shortly.

"What's the matter," he asked her, somewhat concerned.

"Nothing."

"You're walking pretty fast for nothing," he said following behind her.

"Well, our president said exercise and I am very patriotic," she retorted.

"And completely soaked."

"Where is everyone?" she asked frantically.

"Who are you looking for?" Jess inquired, ignoring her question.

"No one," she replied, frustrated.

He got fed up, "Rory, stop. What's the matter - other than the fact you're obviously out of towels?" he asked sarcastically, but with a hint of agitation.

"This guy moved in across the way from us and we said we'd water his lawn and the grass can only be watered in ten minute increments, otherwise the lawn drowns, and the thing is stuck and it won't turn off and I have to find someone, Luke or Taylor or…" she paused, noticing Jess go in the direction she just came from, "Where are you going? Jess!" she yelled.

She sighed indignantly, but ran after him until they reached Dwight's house.

Jess quickly walked up the driveway and bent down, getting sprayed with the sprinkler.

"You don't have to do this. I didn't ask you to do this. I can just find someone else to do it," she protested.

Jess grabbed the handle and without difficulty, turned off the spigot. "Aw, you made it look so easy," she said, suddenly shy and embarrassed now that she noticed the situation they were in.

"Yeah, it was loose. You just had to press down and give it a good twist, that's all," he said with half a smile.

"Well, thank you," she replied timidly.

"You're welcome." He paused, looking at her, "So things good?"

"Oh, yeah, really good." She answered, nodding.

"School?"

"Good," she said, still staring straight into his eyes.

"Still gonna do the Harvard thing?" he asked after a brief silence.

"Yeah," she told him, smiling.

He nodded again, "Good."

"Yeah, good. So…" she trails off, having no idea what to say.

"Yeah, good," he repeated, equally as awkwardly.

"So…how about you? You good, too?"

"Yeah."

They moved closer together, now only a few feet apart, "And school? Still going?" she asked, teasingly, trying to cover up the awkwardness that was thick enough to be cut with a knife.

He smirked, "If I get around to it."

They both stepped even closer, barely six inches apart.

"Huh," she said, mock pouting, "You should go more, then."

"Maybe if I had enough incentive…" he said not finishing, but still smirking.

"And what kind of incentive would you need," she asked him, face just inches from his.

"I don't know. I'm sure that fancy school of yours has taught you something," he responded, eyebrow arched.

She felt his breath against her lips, "Something," she reiterated distractedly.

"Yeah, something," was the last thing he said before his mouth was on hers.

She put her right hand on the back of his neck, while he wrapped his arms around her waist. They were both oblivious to what was going on around them, and if they had seen, they would have been a little more worried with the show they were giving. Well, Rory would have been.

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Meanwhile, Dean had just gotten his page from Rory saying "LAWN DROWN STUCK HELP," and immediately headed towards her house to see what was wrong. As he passed by Babette's house, though, he saw her and Miss Patty looking in the direction of a neighbor's house like a flock of Playgirl models had just moved to Stars Hollow. Curious, Dean went to see what was so shocking that it rendered the town's two 'gossip-whores' completely wide-eyed and speechless.

"Hey Babette, Miss Patty," Dean said friendlily, but brow furrowed.

"Dean! Oh, hi sugar! How's it going?" Babette asked nervously.

"Fine. Hey, do you know where Rory is? I got a page from her that she needed help with something, but she didn't say where."

"Oh, Honey," started Patty, "I, uh…I think she's," she sighed, resigned and waved her cigarette in the general direction she and her friend were just looking at, "that way."

"Thanks. I guess I'll go see what she needs. See you tomorrow."

"I feel so awful for him," Dean heard Miss Patty whisper to Babette as he was leaving, "Poor, poor boy." He shrugged it off, and continued on his way.

Walking past the two women, he looked in the direction that they were previously gawking at, and saw something that made him feel like he was punched in the gut by a Cyclops.

It was Rory and Jess. Kissing. He quickly hid his hurt and let his anger take over.

"Rory!" he yelled, charging towards the unlikely pair.

They broke apart, shocked, and Rory turned her head to Dean, a guilty blush seen rising on her cheeks.

"Oh, Dean…um…this isn't what it looks like," she stuttered, all the while thinking about how cliché and unoriginal that sounded, when she should have been feeling guilty for cheating on her boyfriend.

"So you weren't just making-out Jess?" he questioned, lips pursed.

"Well, um…no…yes?" she almost asked.

"Rory! How could you do this to me?" He was hurt now, and combined with anger, that definitely wasn't good. He was marching up towards Rory, a look on his face Rory had never seen before.

She backed away, nervous that he was going to do something, when Jess, who had been watching this exchange silently, finally piped up.

"Hey, come on, bagboy. She didn't do anything. Isn't it part of the boy scout's honor not to raise your voice to a woman?" Jess asked sarcastically, but worried for Rory, who looked scared.

Dean furiously turned to Jess, "Stay out of this," he spat, but seemed to rethink his response; "Actually, this _is_ between you and me. You've been trying to get Rory for yourself for whatever dumb reasons you have since you've been here. But you know what…she's mine!" Dean screamed at Jess, who was actually smirking at Dean.

Rory interrupted Dean here, finally broken out of her thoughts, "Hold on, Dean. I'm not something you can just own. I can't believe you would say something so egotistically male!"

"Don't turn this on me Rory. You were the one kissing…_him_!" He paused, upset, "You said you loved me. Did you ever or was it just something you said because you felt like you had to?"

Rory had tears in her eyes, mixing in with the water dripping from her hair, and was distressed at what Dean was saying. She never really thought that she didn't love him. It just seemed like she must have; he wanted her to, her Mom wanted her to, hell, almost the entire town wanted her to. Maybe she really didn't.

She bit her lip, contemplating, "I…I think…I'm sorry," she said, head bent down, ashamed; "I really thought I did. I promise I wouldn't have lied to you if I knew. You were…are so sweet and perfect, and I was confusing what I thought was love, for…I don't know…something that wasn't, apparently," she finished, softly.

Dean deflated, suddenly having heard what he'd been afraid to admit it for awhile now. She didn't love him like he loved her. He knew it somewhere deep down, hidden, and was scared that if he let it out and thought about it at all, it would make it true. Too late for that, though.

Jess decided to let the two be alone. He knew what was coming, and he felt that to be fair to Rory, he'd better beat it for a little while so they could do this the right way. He quietly backed out of the yard, neither noticing his absence, and aimlessly strolled down the street, fingering a cigarette in his pocket, thoughtfully. He had to do something.

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Ten minutes later, Rory was inaudibly crying on her way home from Dwight's house. It was over. She couldn't believe how much she messed up. Kissing Jess, Dean seeing, admitting to Dean she never loved him, and telling him about the wedding, and finally breaking up with him. She thought about going to the bridge so she could think for a little bit, but decided against it, being that Jess was most likely there, as well, and she couldn't face him right now.

She didn't know what she was going to do. The whole town was going to hate her, and her Mom was going to be so disappointed. Dean was hurt because of her, and she might have permanently ruined her relationship with Jess. He had a girlfriend for God's sake, why would he what to be with her?

And most importantly, she felt awful about herself. She never thought she'd be a cheater, liar, or letdown, but currently, she was all three. She knew what she needed to do, and that included a pint of Rocky Road and her mother's arms. She needed to wallow, and she needed to think. She needed to figure out what she was going to do before she hurt anyone else in the process.

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	2. Take The Scrambled Eggs

**Chapter 2- Take the Scrambled Eggs **

"Honey, I'm home!" came Lorelai's exhausted, by cheerful voice from the doorway.

"Hey, Mom," Rory said, dejectedly. She was sitting on the couch, open containers of ice cream, half-eaten bags of popcorn, and empty mugs of coffee lying around haphazardly, and playing on the T.V. was the movie "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory;" a good wallowing movie, of course, due to the copious amounts of candy and chocolate constantly on the screen.

As Lorelai walked into the living room and saw her daughter curled up on the sofa in her pink fuzzy pajamas and matching slippers, she immediately rushed over to the couch to join her.

She pulled Rory up into her arms and held her like she would a baby, just letting Rory finally cry over all that had happened in such a short amount of time.

After a few minutes of sobbing, Rory was down to the occasional sniffle here or there. "What happened?" Lorelai asked, frowning.

"It's over. I made a mistake," Rory responded, miserably.

"Oh, babe. What'd you do? Do you need me to kill Dean for you?"

"No." She paused, trying to figure out what to say next. "I did something really bad that hurt a lot of people, and I'm surprised you don't already know about it because I thought the while town would be talking about it by now…but, maybe Babette and Miss Patty are giving it awhile; they are nice like that. Anyway, I kinda kissed Jess and-"

Lorelai interrupted her, a little confused, "You kissed Jess last year. Why would that have anything to do with what happened now…oh. Again, huh?" she asked, a sad smile on her face.

"Yeah. I didn't mean to…see, I was watering the lawn and the lever thingy broke and it wouldn't turn off, so I paged Dean, but I guess I lost my pager, because he never paged me back, and then I was looking for Luke or someone to help with it because you said it would drown and I ran into Jess and I told him what happened and he went to fix it even though I told him he didn't have to, and he made it look easy, and then we were both standing in the yard, soaking wet, and we sorta had this awkward conversation and then there was the magnet that made us get closer and closer until we kissed." She took a deep breath, and continued, "And then we kissed a little more and then a few minutes later I heard Dean yell and we kinda jumped apart and then he kinda got all mad and stuff and he and Jess got into a fight, verbal, not physical because Jess was standing up for me, and then Jess left and we talked and I wasn't in love with him and I never was, so we broke up, oh, and Miss Patty and Babette were watching the whole thing from kiss to the final 'I'm sorry' that I said to Dean before I left and ran back home to wallow and eat."

She looked up at her Mom to see a sympathetic expression on her face, with traces of amusement laced in her eyes.

"What's so funny?" Rory asked, pouting.

"You made-out with Jess…" Lorelai taunted, "You said you kissed Jess and then a few minutes later Dean came, meaning you were kissing for a few minutes; thus making-out," she finished smugly.

"Yeah, but he has a girlfriend and she's blond and likes to kiss against trees and I was probably some awful memory he won't ever what to relive to him."

"Rory, that kid's been obsessed with you since he's gotten her, and no offence, but it doesn't seem like it's entirely one-sided. As much as I, and even you have tried to deny it- you like Jess," she pointed out.

Rory sighed heavily, forehead wrinkled, thinking about what Lorelai just said. It was true, wasn't it? She did like Jess in more than a friendly way. Huh. Now what, though

"I guess you're right…but that doesn't change the fact that he's with the Barbie wannabe and you hate him."

"I wouldn't say 'hate' per say; that's too strong of a word. I mean, there must be something there if you like him so much. And about the chick…she's nothing. You show any indication to him that you want to be with him, and she's gone. Out of the picture," Lorelai assured her, nodding.

"Thanks, Mom." Pause. "I think I'm gonna go to bed. It's been a long day."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay up and eat and watch some more T.V.? We can make it a movie-_ish_ night…" Lorelai asked.

"I'll take a rain check on that. I want to catch up on some reading. There's this book I've always wanted to start, but never have the time or motivation to do it. Good night!" she called.

"Night, hun. Love ya!"

"Love you, too, Mom!"

Lorelai collapsed into the couch and reached for a bag of potato chips. She was reluctant to admit it, but Jess scared her. He was so much like Christopher, and Rory was turning into a mini-Lorelai. She didn't want her daughter to make the same mistake she did, and she wouldn't, even if that was the last thing she did.

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"Morning," Rory said, walking into the kitchen a week later, on her way to grabbing a pop tart.

"Morning." Replied Lorelai distractedly. She was looking at the dozens of catalogs laid out on the table in front of her.

Rory glanced at the area around her mom and remarked, "Wow, someone woke up in project mode today."

"I'm like the army, baby. I get more done before nine o'clock in the morning than others get done all day."

"Well, as long as you don't abandon it mid-project…" Rory warned, trailing off.

Lorelai protested, "I do not do that."

"Make your own seashell candles?" Rory asked her, remembering a time in the past.

Lorelai scowled, "Aw, not fair."

"The place smelled like melted crayons for three weeks."

"This is different," guaranteed Lorelai.

Rory rolled her eyes, but gave up on the useless fight, "Fine, what's the project?"

"This is a pile of every catalog we have received for the last three months," she told her daughter.

Rory raised a bemused eyebrow, "Okay…"

"I have gathered them all together, and I will now proceed to call all the companies that are sending us duplicates and tell them to stop," she explained.

"That's very environmental of you."

"It's getting ridiculous. We get, like, eight of some of these," she stated matter-of-factly.

Rory's eyes widened, "You're kidding."

"Check this out." She picked up a stack of the thick books, "This is a stack of identical catalogs mailed to Lorelai Gilmore, Rory Gilmore, Lorelai Rory Gilmore, Lorelai V. Gilmore, Lorelai Victoria Gilmore, Lorelai Gilmo, Lorelai Gil, and Squeegy Beckinheim."

"How'd that get in there?" Rory asked her, eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"I once told a store my name was Squeegy Beckinheim just to see how many catalogs they would sell my name to, and apparently my name is to catalog companies what Brooke Shields' picture is to Chinese restaurants."

"How many?" questioned Rory.

"Ten."

"Wow."

"Yeah, I know," Lorelai said, amused.

"You do know that you were the one who started this whole thing…" Rory told her.

"Unintentionally, of course. It was just a little experiment."

Rory shook her head, "I can see it worked." She picked up the catalog closest to her, "Why is this addressed to Tookie Clothespin?"

"Oh, I forgot my code name at the second store I tested, so I told 'em it was Tookie Clothespin."

"Gotcha'," she paused, thoughtfully, "What do you say we head to Luke's this morning?" she asked nervously.

Lorelai turned to face her daughter, "Really? Are you sure you're ready to go in there?"

"Yeah. I can't avoid him forever," she explained.

"Okay…if you're sure, then."

"I'm sure," Rory assured her.

"So, I guess we should go…" Lorelai said, picking up her purse.

"What, are you gonna finish the project?"

"I'll do it later- you're more important than some stacks of bounded paper, and…today's Danish day!"

"Yum. Let's go!" Rory said a little overenthusiastically.

"Let's" Lorelai nodded.

They grabbed their stuff, turned off the lights and walked out the front door, both a little apprehensive to what the day would bring.

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"Coffee," Lorelai shouted, back to her normal self as she walked into the diner door.

"Hold on, you're not the only customer," Luke said, gruffly.

"Aww, me and mini-me haven't been to your wonderful establishment in a week and that's the welcome we get?" She mocked dramatically.

"It wasn't my fault you didn't come," he paused, setting down two mugs of coffee in front of them at the counter, "Why haven't you been in her recently? Is something wrong? Was it Jess, because if it was Jess, I swear to God, I will kill him…Jess-" he started, shouting up the stairs.

"No, not Jess, exactly. It was more Rory not feeling all to well…she and Dean broke up."

Luke's face had a surprised look, "Oh…I'm sorry," he said sincerely, "you know, I always said he wasn't good enough for you."

"Thanks Luke," said the previously silent Rory, "but I think it was a long time coming. Breakfast?" she asked hopefully.

"Sure, anything you want, on the house."

"Oooh, me too, me too…I had to put up with her wallowing for the last few days- do I get what I want, too?" Lorelai asked excitedly.

Luke rolled his eyes, but nodded his assent.

"I want… French toast, Belgium waffles, and Colombian coffee," she ordered, smiling, "I want to delve into the unknown of un-Al's food from around the world."

"Okay. Same for you, Rory?" he said, writing down the food.

"Uh, no thanks. I'll just have some eggs and coffee."

"Okay. I'll have Jess bring it to you in a minute," he told them, already walking into the back.

Rory turned to her Mom, biting her lip. Lorelai shrugged her shoulders as if to say, 'What do you want me to do? It was bound to happen some time.'

The younger Gilmore bent her head down, waiting for the food and the awkward conversation that was certain to come with it.

A few minutes later, she saw a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon set down in front of her, and a more crowded plate of food set in front of her mom.

"Uh," she said, hesitantly, "I sorta wanted the eggs sunny-side up…but" she retracted, seeing his annoyed expression, "this is perfectly fine, too."

"No, I'll go change it," Jess said, reaching for her dish.

"No, I'll just take the scrambled eggs. I don't want to be a burden," she told him, not looking at his face, afraid at what she would see. She didn't blame him for being angry with her. She ignored him all week.

"Fine, then. Is that all?" he asked.

Rory just nodded, already eating her food, so Lorelai butted in, "Yep. All good. Thanks for bringing the coffee," she said as politely as she could.

He arched a confused eyebrow, but didn't comment. He twisted on his heel and walked back into the storage room, trying to figure out why in the world she was being friendly to him.

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"Hey, that wasn't too bad," Lorelai pointed out as they were walking out of the diner half-an-hour later.

"Yeah, if you think that the Civil War was just a bad case of sibling rivalry, it wasn't," Rory snorted.

"Hey, come on. You can't blame him for being a little irritated. You kissed him, and then didn't talk to him for seven days. He might not even know you and Dean broke up."

"This is Stars Hollow. He must know," Rory told her mother.

"Yeah, 'cause I can totally see Jess gossiping with the cheerleaders at school."

"Okay, maybe not. But, I like, him, you know, and I don't like fighting with him" she explained sadly.

"Then fix it. Talk to him later- one on one."

"Yeah, maybe I'll do that. Thanks," she said, genuinely.

"For what?" asked Lorelai, puzzled.

"For being so understanding, and being nice to him, and for being such a cool mom."

"Aww, your welcome." She paused, noticing the bus, "Hey, you'd better get to school. See you this afternoon." And with that, she kissed her daughter's forehead and marched doff in the direction of the Inn, chin up.

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**A/N: So, what do you think? I'm sorry for the lack of Rory/Jess interaction this chapter, but I think next chapter should have lots. And lots. )...I was so surprised at the number of reviews telling me how mcuh they were looking foward to this story. I hope this is up to your expectations...**

**Please review...please- It really helps me write better and faster. Please.**


	3. They Miss Gilmores, Don't They?

**Chapter 3- They Miss Gilmores, Don't They? **

Rory slung her yellow backpack over her shoulder as she was stepping off the bus. She walked down the sidewalk until she reached Doose's, where she paused and looked inside through the window.

She saw Dean, a frown on his face, stocking the shelves. It hurt a little to see him there and not be able to do her normal routine of a short visit and kiss, but she also felt a little relieved that she didn't have to put up the façade anymore.

She sighed, and averted her eyes away from the market and onto the diner. There, she saw Jess, scowl on his face, talking to a customer. She rolled her eyes, and smiled thinking about how just looking at Jess could create butterflies in her stomach. She headed towards Luke's, determined to make things right with Jess, whatever they may be.

Jess twisted his heads in the direction of the door as he heard the bells jingle, as he did so many times before. He wasn't expecting it to be her; she'd been avoiding him all week, so imagine his surprise when he saw it was the girl he'd been thinking about since he moved to this crazy town.

She marched up to him, right into his face.

"Hi," she said, teeth biting her lower lip.

He ignored her, expression emotionless and went to fill some more coffee around the diner.

She sighed in frustration before sliding behind him, following him until he stopped at the counter.

"Jess?" she said.

He turned around, jaw clenched.

"Rory."

"Um…can we talk?" she asked him, nervously.

He lifted the coffee pot up in his hand, motioning towards the crowded tables in the diner, "I'm working right now."

"Well, I know. I meant later. Like tonight," she explained, somewhat babbling.

He didn't answer for a minute, but nodded his head, "Fine."

"Okay, so um…how about ten-thirty at the bridge?"

"I'll try to make it," he old her before twisting around and resuming his job.

She stood still for a moment, processing, before dashing out of the diner, wanting to make it home so she could figure out what she was going to say tonight when they finally talked. She knew she had to tell him how she felt, and apologize for a couple of things. She also had to find out what was happening on his side of things, and then put it all together, maybe finally getting what she wanted all along.

When she got to her house, she looked at the clock, and noticing it was only five, got out her textbooks and started on some weekend homework.

Five hours later, two boxes of pizza, and a pot-and-a-half of coffee, she was finally finished with her homework. She saw she only had about fifteen minutes before she had to leave, so she rushed into her room and pulled on some more appropriate and comfortable clothes.

She brushed her hair a couple of times and put on some lip-gloss before grabbing a pad of paper and writing a quick note to her Mom telling her where she was going and not to worry if she wasn't home.

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Jess looked at his watched as he sat down at the bridge. He was ten minutes early.

He sighed and nervously ran a hand through his hair. He leaned back against the cold wooden planks, laying down and closed his eyes, apprehensively awaiting Rory's arrival and the guaranteed uncomfortable and possibly scary conversation that she would want to have. He had to admit, though. He sort of wanted to talk, as well. He didn't know what she felt for him, if anything, and he hoped tonight would clear everything up, whether it be over for them, or possibly just starting.

A few minutes later, he heard timid footsteps along the bridge. He squinted one eye open, making sure it was her, but quickly closed it, putting his 'I don't give a damn' front on.

Rory bit her lip, something she seemed to be doing a lot recently, before sitting down next to Jess. She was quiet for a mew moments, not saying a word, before the silent tension got to her, and she broke.

"I'm sorry," she said worriedly, before lying down next to him, both of their feet dangling off the edge of the dock, barely inches from the dark water.

"What for?" he asked after a few seconds, still not turning to look at her.

"Everything. For when I kissed you at Sookie's wedding, then didn't talk to you all summer, for being jealous of Shane, for kissing you that day you fixed the sprinkler, for ignoring and avoiding you all week, and for every awful thin else I did these last few months. I've been a total jerk, and I wouldn't blame you if you were hating me right now, but I can't stand fighting with you. I miss talking to you, and this week has been horrible. Dean and I breaking up, the thing with Sherry' s baby shower, not getting to spend time with you, and on top of that, I'm having to deal with Paris and her boy problems when I already have enough of my own to last a lifetime. Or twelve." She exhaled a deep breath after she finished, and looked over towards Jess, who now had his eyes open, and his forehead furrowed.

"You broke up with Dean?" was the first thing to come out of his mouth a few moments later.

"Yeah. Right after you left Dwight's house," she explained.

"Huh."

"Is that all you've gotta say?" she asked him, a little irritated.

"Nope. I'm trying to process everything, I guess."

She nodded, waiting for him to talk.

"I'm sorry, too," he said finally.

"You didn't do anything. I can't put the blame on you for what happened. It was all me."

"I broke up with Shane," he said suddenly.

"Oh. I'm sorry? What-" he cut her off, smirking.

"No you're not. You never liked her."

"Well, you did, and I…never mind. She was too much of a flake for you anyways. You need someone who smart and witty and can understand what you talk about, and can match you as your equal, intellectually."

He twisted his body so that now he was on his side, and gave her a small and rare smile, "Where can I find a girl like that?"

She turned as well, and looked at his face, "I don't know. Can you think of anyone?"

"Huh. Well, there's this one girl- she's all you described and has the bluest eyes I've ever seen. But, I'm not exactly sure if she feels the same way about me as I do about her."

"If she's that smart, she must. How couldn't she?" she told him, smiling.

"That's good to hear." He paused, thoughtfully, "What do you think I should do about this girl?"

"Maybe you should let her know how you feel," she offered.

He nodded and sighed, before making sure about something "You're definitely broken up with Dean?"

"Yeah, I'm definitely broken up with Dean."

"Good." Pause. "Um, do you want to maybe do something tomorrow, then?" he asked her, running a hand through his hair.

She smiled at him, "Yeah. That'd be great."

He gave her a half-smile and laid back down against the bridge. She followed soon after, and they laid down in a comfortable silence for a while, until Rory, noticing it was almost midnight, decided she'd better head home and fill in her Mom on all that happened.

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The next morning, Rory bounded onto a chair at the kitchen table with a huge smile on her face.

"What's gotten you so chipper this lovely morning?" asked Lorelai sarcastically, just putting the phone down, agitated at her daughter's antics, "because I'm not feeling all too great."

"I've got a date with Jess today," she replied happily.

"I know. That's all you were talking about last night for hours when you got home." Pause. "Oh, guess what…Stanley Appleman called. Apparently, Miss Patty showed his wife a picture of me, and she thinks I look like Elizabeth Taylor, which makes her Debbie Reynolds, and Stanley Eddie Fisher," she told her daughter, pouting.

"That's crazy."

"Especially if you've seen Stanley. He's no Eddie Fisher, trust me. Fisher Stevens, maybe," she elucidated.

"Can't you talk to her?" Rory asked, upset that her Mom lost yet another partner for the dance marathon.

"Apparently, only at my own risk." Pause. "I have no partner," she said, letting her head fall against the table.

"You'll find another one," Rory promised, trying to make her feel a little less down.

"I hope so," she said. Suddenly, she got a glint in her eye that scared Rory a little, "Hey. What about you-"

"Forget it," Rory stated shortly.

"Just hear me out. First of all, you love me," Lorelai said, using her fingers to number the points she was about to make.

"Not right at this moment, I don't," she said, getting out of her seat, "hey, I have an idea for someone you can dance with…"

"Oh, who?" asked Lorelai, excited.

"Luke."

"Oh, come on. Luke can't dance, can he?" Lorelai wrinkled her nose in thought.

"I don't know. You'll never find out if you don't ask him," Rory pointed out.

"Huh. Maybe I will. Thanks."

"Welcome." Rory paused, grabbed a pop tart and her book bag, "I've got to get to school early today. We have an A.M. meeting with the Franklin and then I have to study for the AP Physics test that's later this afternoon."

"Okay. I'm working late at the inn again, so I'll leave some money under the rabbi if you want to order some dinner…Is Jess coming over here to hang out, or are you guys going somewhere else in town?" she asked, trying to play it cool.

"I'm not sure yet. We didn't have time to figure any details out, so we'll probably play it by ear," she said obliviously through mouthfuls of food, "I'm going now, so see you tonight." She pecked her mom on the cheek, before saying a quick "Love you" and rushing out the front door.

She walked quickly towards her bus stop, and while passing the diner, flashed Jess a small smile. Sitting down on the bench, she unzipped the pocket of her book bag and pulled out a copy of "For Whom the Bell Tolls," and began reading where she left off the night before…

_"It was cold in the night and Robert Jordon slept heavily. Once he woke and, stretching, realized that the girl was there, curled far down in the robe, breathing lightly and regularly, and in the dark, bringing his head in from the cold the sky hard and sharp with stars, the air cold in his nostrils, he put his head under the warmth of the robe and kissed her smooth shoulder. She did not wake and…" _

"Whatcha' reading," Jess asked her, jumping over the back of the bench she was sitting at and settling down next to her.

She quickly tried to cover the front of the book, but he startled her enough that he could see the title.

"Hemingway? I thought he was dull enough to be used as a cure for insomnia?" he said, a small smirk spreading across his face.

"Well, this guy I really like has the strange fondness for Hemingway, so I thought I'd give him another try," she explained, grinning.

"You must really like him," he said, eyebrows raised.

"Who- the author or the guy?" she questioned innocently and doe-eyed.

"Both," she stated simply.

"Oh, you know how these things go…one's better than the other, but-" she trailed off, laughing slightly.

"Of course." He paused, "So, what do you think so far of the book?"

Her forehead crinkled as she thought, "It's better than I thought it would be. It does get a little boring and repetitive, I guess, but the descriptiveness does help a lot with picturing certain things throughout the book," she answered, nodding.

"Really? I told you you'd like it if you gave him a chance. He's not so painful anymore, huh?"

"Apparently not," she admitted grudgingly. They spoke for a few more minutes about different types of literature, music, and current events, until she realized that the bus still hadn't come.

"Hey, did you by chance, see the bus go by?" Rory asked him, interrupting his tirade on the Beats.

"Uh, yeah. About ten minutes ago, I think. Why?"

"Oh, no. Oh, no. God, I'm going to get in so much trouble with Paris if I'm late to the meeting. I can't believe I missed the bus. Maybe I can go home and borrow the jeep, or-"

She was cut off by his mouth on hers, "Sorry," he said a few second later, "You were ranting, and I had to get you to shut up."

"Thanks, I think. But I still have to figure out what I'm going to do about getting to school. The next bus doesn't come for another half-an-hour, and it'll be too late by then."

"I'll give you a ride," he offered, "I got a car a few days ago, and it's nothing special, but it gets me from here to there."

"Really? Don't you have school?" she asked him, anxiously.

"Yeah, but it doesn't start until nine. Being a few minutes late isn't a big deal. Come on, I'm parked over there," he responded, motioning to a beat-up car to his left.

"Thank you so much. I owe you," she said, gathering her stuff and lobbing it over shoulder, "I can't tell you how great this is."

"It's no big deal," he assured her, getting on to the driver's seat, "Let's go before you're late, though."

She nodded and threw her stuff in the backseat before getting in herself. She buckled, and he followed suit, and within a few minutes, were heading to Hartford in a comfortable silence. She messed with the radio dial until a not-too-awful station was found, and just relaxed into the seat, feeling at ease with just sitting next to Jess in the car.

Half an hour later, and many song mocking remarks, they were finally at the large Chilton building. Jess looked at it with something akin to awe splayed out on his features, just the enormity and history radiating off the walls of the old structure shocking him.

"Wow," was all he said, pulling up to the front of the school where he could drop her off.

"I know. Impressive, no? When Mom and I first saw this place, we were just as overwhelmed with everything as you are," Rory told him, unfastening her seatbelt and reaching in the back for her bag.

"Yeah. I'd be kind of cool to see what it's like inside."

"Hey, maybe one day I can give you a tour or something. I gotta go, now, though. So, tonight…" she trailed off, eyebrows raised, waiting for him to continue her thought.

"Tonight. Um, how about we meet at the dinner at six and we can get something to eat then go do something from there?" he proposed, awaiting her approval.

"Sounds great. See you then," she said as she was getting out of the car. She gently slammed the passenger side door, and walked around the front of the car towards the building.

"Hey, aren't you forgetting something?" he called out to her as she started marching purposely away.

She turned back, confusion evident on her face. "What? I have my bag, my books, my homework, my lunch money…"

"What about a proper thanks?" he asked, smirking.

"Oh," she nodded, grinning, "Sorry 'bout that."

She walked back to the car and bent down to his window.

"Well," he said after a few seconds, "What are you waiting for?"

"Those guys over there are looking at me," she told him nervously, waving her hand in the direction where a group of jocks were talking.

"Oh. I see." He smirked up at her and grabbed the back of her neck, bringing her face down towards his, "Ignore them."

He kissed her hard, and she dropped her backpack on the ground by the car. They continued kissing for awhile longer, until they heard someone shout.

"Gilmore! I'm glad you dropped Farmer John, but stop making out with your new guy and come to the meeting. You're not going to get accepted to Harvard by skipping out on newspaper meetings to neck your boyfriend in the school parking lot," came Paris' sharp voice, breaking them out of their daze.

Rory blushed, and signaled to her sort-of friend that she'd be right there. She turned her head towards Jess, who was smirking, "Hey Paris," he yelled past Rory, waving.

Paris narrowed her eyes, "Jess, was it? Well at least you can read a book where the words have more than one syllable. Now, go then. I need Rory's article on the locker infestation, and you're holding her up."

"Sorry, Paris," he shouted back to her, before turning his head back to the still-embarrassed Rory, "So, see you tonight?" he confirmed, twisting the keys in the ignition.

"Yeah. See you." She gave him one last peck, and practically ran to Paris' retreating back, trying hard to ignore the stares she was getting from her shocked classmates.

Jess chuckled quietly to his self at her innocence and naivety, before pulling out of the Chilton parking lot, also ignoring the stares coming his way, not at all affected unlike his more timid counterpart.

-

-

-

"Ooh, who was that gorgeous hunk of a guy?" Madeline asked, as soon as they entered the building.

"Um…" started Rory, still flushed with embarrassment.

"Yeah. Whatever happened to your tall guy? Dean, was it? Does this mean he's available and on the market?" questioned Louise, interested.

"Well, I uh...I guess so," Rory said uncertainly.

"Louise, give her time. She just broke up with him, right Rory?" Madeline told her friend, turning to Rory as she said the last part.

"Yeah. Um, I don't think he's your type, anyway." She coughed lightly, "Um, let's get to the meeting. Sorry, I was late," Rory apologized.

"Amen to that," Paris said sharply, "We have to hunker down. This is our last year of high school and we have to make an impression on the colleges-"

She was interrupted by the sound of a gavel. "Hey, who used my gavel?" Paris asked loudly. She ran over to the head of the table, reprimanding whoever was crazy enough to get on Paris' bad side.

Rory rolled her eyes, and sat down in the chair next to where she was standing, leaving Louise and Madeline gossiping about some guy or another, Paris making some freshman burst into tears, and herself, musing about her pending date with Jess. It was going to be an interesting day.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own it.  
A/N: How do you like the chapter? It's really long! Whew! What a doozy! Lol...anyways, please tell me what you think. I'm happily surprised with all the reviews I'm getting and would love to get just as many for this chapter. Thanks for reading!**


	4. Let The Games Continue

**Chapter 4- Let the Games Continue **

"How am I supposed to figure out what to wear if I have no idea where I'm going?" Rory mumbled to herself, digging through a pile of clothes in her closet, "Do I wear a dress, something casual, ugh…I can't do this," she said, throwing the numerous blouses in her hands down onto the bed and then following after them, lying face up, staring at the ceiling.

She crinkled her brow, trying to think of what she was going to do, "Was I ever this stressed out about looking good with Dean? No, not really, was I? What's wrong with me? I see Jess everyday. No big deal."

She sighed heavily, grabbed a simple pair of jeans and an orange top, and ran into the bathroom. Twenty minutes later, she was finishing drying her hair, when she heard the phone ring.

On the second ring, she called out, "Please don't hang up, come on, where are you," looking for the phone under the sofa cushions, "Gotcha!"

"Hello," she said breathlessly into the phone.

"Rory!" Lane squealed, "Why didn't you tell me you were going out with Jess tonight? I heard from Tiffany who heard from Andrea who heard from Lindsay who heard from Shane who heard from- Ugh, never mind. Anyway, I heard that you had a date with Jess. The whole school couldn't stop talking about how 'Too-Smart-for-Us-Rory Gilmore' is with 'Rude-Big City-Never Comes to School-Jess!' Why didn't you tell me?" Lane whined.

Rory cringed, "Sorry! I was going to tell you but then so much happened and then Mom and Paris…"

" Paris. Got it. So..." she asked, eagerly, trailing off.

"Well, last night we talked at the bridge, and I said I liked him, and then he said he liked me-"

"Wait, Jess, Jess Mariano told you he liked you?"

"Well, not in those words, but he said, and I quote, 'there's this one girl- she's all you described and has the bluest eyes I've ever seen. But, I'm not exactly sure if she feels the same way about me as I do about her.' How cute is that?" Rory said into the phone, walking into her room and picking out a purse.

"Awww. That's sweet," Lane replied happily. "What else happened?"

"Well, he asked me out, and then we just sat at the bridge for a while until I had to go home," she paused, dropping all of her date necessities into the bag she had just chosen, "and then this morning, I went to the bus stop and he came and sat down next to me. We talked some, until I realized it was already past what time it should be for the bus to come. Apparently, I was so absorbed with talking to him; I missed the bus, so he offered to give me a ride. He got a new car, by the way."

"You trust Jess driving a car?" Lane asked, somewhat worried.

"Yeah. I've told you a million times before, the accident was just that; and accident. It wasn't his fault. He swerved to miss the cute furry thing, making us hit the pole. It could just as easily have happened to me or Lorelai."

"I guess you're right," she told her friend, defeated, "Is that all?"

"Uh," Rory wavered, debating internally whether to tell Lane the rest of what had transpired during the day. She shrugged, "Not really. So, we drove to Chilton, just talking and listening to music. When we got there, we confirmed the date, and I left the car. As I was walking away, he said 'Aren't you forgetting something?' and me, being me, had no idea what he was talking about, until he said, 'A proper thanks' while smirking the whole time," she took a deep breath and continued, "so I finally realized what he meant, so I wet back to the car and bent down to kiss him, but there were these guys watching so I hesitated. He just said to ignore them, and then pulled my head down and kissed me. At first it was sweet and short, but we both kinda got carried away, and it sort of lasted longer than appropriate for a high school parking lot."

Rory could hear Lane chuckle at the end of the line, "And…" she prodded expectantly.

"Well, Paris saw and started yelling at me from the school, bringing everyone's attention that wasn't already on us before, on us then, where she told me she was glad I dropped 'Farmer John', Paris' word, by the way, but to stop 'necking my boyfriend' and get inside to the Franklin meeting."

"Sounds like Paris, doesn't it?" Lane said, laughter laced throughout her voice, "What time do you have to meet Jess tonight?"

Rory looked over at the clock on her nightstand, and squealed at seeing the time, "Eh! Like in ten minutes! I gotta go, but I promise I'll give you all the details first thing tomorrow morning. Bye!"

"Bye!" Lane exclaimed, "And don't leave anything out!"

"Kay. Talk later!" She hung up the phone, did a quick mirror check, took the folded bills under the rabbi and stuck them in her purse, and went out the front door, locking it on the way.

She took a few deep breaths, calming herself down, trying to figure out why in the world she would be so nervous. She shook her head, seemingly clearing out any doubts she had, and made her way to Luke's.

Five minutes later, she opened the door to the diner, and heard the bell jingle signifying her entrance. She looked around, not seeing Jess at first, but turning to the curtain leading up to the apartment, she saw him casually walking down the stairs dressed in a pair of faded Levis and a black button down shirt.

"Hey," Jess said a tad bit nervously, coming up towards Rory, "Do you wanna eat something here first or get something somewhere else?"

"Here's fine. I didn't know where we were going, so I just threw something on. If it's not alright then-" she rambled.

He interrupted her, "It's fine. So, uh," he ran hand through his hair, "so you wanna sit down, then?"

"Oh, yeah. Sorry," she answered blushing. She went over to a table in the corner and settled into a chair, him soon following across from her.

"No problem" he waved it off, "You want a soda, coffee?"

"No, I'm fine," she assured him.

"Okay." He looked around apprehensively, "You sure you don't want anything to drink?" he asked almost desperately.

"Yeah, I'm sure," she nodded.

There was an awkward pause, "Please let me get you a soda or something. I gotta do something other than sit here like a moron."

"Take comfort in the fact that you are not doing it alone," she pointed out.

"Okay," he said, sighing, "So, let's just regroup here."

"Yeah, regroup." She bit her lip, "This is dumb."

"You're telling me," he answered, nearly laughing.

"We were fine this morning; what happened?" she asked him.

He shook his head, amused, "I dunno. Maybe we should just get out of the dinner. It feel like I should be getting up and start taking orders or something, and I think Miss Patty is staring at us- What do you say we just get outta here?" he questioned, and expectant look on his face.

"Sounds like a plan. I don't like the idea of the whole town watching our date," she answered, grabbing her purse and standing up, "Feels a little too Big Brother."

He arched an eyebrow as he got up as well, "Date?"

"Well, I just assumed, but if it's not then…um, well, I guess I'll…" she started rambling, flustered.

"I'm just teasing," he said with a smile, "I think it would be considered a date."

"Mean," she said, playfully sticking out her tongue at him.

"Why, thank you, my darling," he exaggerated, gesturing widely with his arms, "I'm glad to know you think oh-so much of me."

"Your welcome." She told him, rolling her eyes lightheartedly.

They continued walking in comfortable silence until she got annoyed not knowing where they were going, "So…what exactly do you have planned for this date?"

"Do you really want to know that badly?" he asked her. At her forceful nod, he sighed, "Fine. I was going to take you to this opening of a new café in Litchfield. It supposed to have this book/music store attached."

"Oh, I think I heard about that. Lane said something about them having a few old records she could never find," Rory said excitedly.

"Good. I also heard a rumor that they have a signed first-edition of The Sun Also Rises."

"Blech. I still don't understand how he can be your favorite author," she complained, wrinkling her nose.

"I never said he was my favorite. I just said that he's a great author. Better than a lot of authors that you've tried to get me to read."

"This is coming from a guy that-" She trailed off, noticing they were finally there, "Wow, this is pretty cool."

"Yeah. Guess it is. Let's check it out." He opened the door, and followed in behind her.

The place was pretty packed, but they managed to find a small table they could sit at. He waved over the waiter, who looked extremely frazzled, and ordered two coffees. They sat and talked for about an hour, before heading over to the shop part, and browsing for books and music.

-

-

-

"That was a lot of fun," Rory said a few hours later, walking down the street, "I managed to get a few things for Lane and some books I've been wanting to read."

"It wasn't too bad, actually," Jess admitted, "I wish it wasn't so crowded, though. I felt sort of rushed."

"Yeah, that's true." She paused, readjusting the heavy bag in her arms, "So, now what?"

"We could go back, but," he looked down at his watch, "It's only nine fifteen. We can just walk around here for a little while before going back to the prying eyes of Stars Hollow."

"I like that idea," she said, "but this bag is getting heavy. I never realized how lucky I was to live so close to the bookstore back near home."

"Here, let's trade. My bag is a lot lighter…" he offered, handing her his smaller purchase.

"Are you sure?" she asked him, not wanting to bother him with it.

"Yeah. Come on," he said, switching the bags around. She thanked him, finally relieved of the weight on her arms.

"Hey…guess what Saturday is?" she asked him eagerly.

"Um, I have no idea," he looked at her enthusiastic face, "but I'm betting you're gonna tell me, aren't you?"

"Yep. It's the dance marathon. Mom's trying to rope Luke to be her partner, and it would be so fun to stay up and watch them together; dancing."

"A town event? I don't do that kinda thing," he complained.

She pouted, "Aw, come on. It could be a good chance for them. Something might happen to get them to finally admit their feelings. Wouldn't you hate to miss that?"

He wavered, "I dunno. Maybe, I guess. I'll think about it."

She smiled brightly, "That's all I ask."

-

-

-

"Hey, Mom! I'm home!" Rory called out shutting the door behind her as she stepped into the house, "Marco!"

Lorelai's voice could be heard coming from upstairs, "Polo!"

"I'm coming up," she told her Mom tossing her bag in her room and kicking off her shoes, "I had so much fun."

Rory bounded up the stairs excitedly and jumped up on Lorelai's bed, Lorelai already laying on it, watching something on T.V.

"Not too much fun, I hope," Lorelai warned, slipping off her glasses and sitting up.

Rory glared at her mom, but otherwise ignored her comment, "Guess where we went?"

At Lorelai's shrug, she continued, "He took me to a Book and Music Café opening in Litchfield. We both bought a lot of stuff, and I even got some things Lane's been looking for."

"That's great. Is that all you did? It's pretty late right now- almost midnight," she said looking at the clock on her nightstand.

"No, we started off at Luke's, but that was really awkward, so we left really soon. We stayed at the Café for a few hours, and we're out a little after nine."

"So what'd you do between now and then?" Lorelai asked, eyebrows raised.

"We just walked around Litchfield for awhile. It's like Stars Hollow, but no one knows us, se we weren't be gawked at like a piece of meat. I convinced him to go to the dance marathon so we can cheer you and Luke on." She paused, "You did get Luke to agree, right?"

Lorelai beamed, "Of course. Would I be Lorelai Gilmore if I couldn't charm a guy with my beauty and wit to do whatever I want them to do? I think not."

"Great. But, don't you have to get up really early tomorrow morning? Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

She hesitated, "Uh, well, I was just looking over some of the Inn's books and-"

"You were waiting up for me," Rory accused, waggling her finger in Lorelai's face, "You don't trust me."

"Hey, that's not true. I trust you; I just don't trust him," she explained matter-of-factly.

Rory sighed, knowing she was in a losing battle at this point in time. "Fine. But don't let that get in the way of me being able to spend time with him. I really, really like him. A lot."

Both Lorelai's voice and feature's softened, "I know. I promise I'll make more of an effort." She paused, thoughtfully, "I guess I should go to bed, then. Night." She kissed Rory on the cheek before turning off the lights and snuggling under the covers.

"Night, Mom." She bent down and kissed her Mom on the forehead before walking out of the room and closing the door behind her, leaving it open a crack.

She lumbered down the stairs, the days events finally catching up to her and went into her room. She quickly pulled on some pajamas before settling into bed and falling asleep within minutes.

-

-

-

It was the morning of the dance marathon, and the girls were beat.

"I have to say, for a couple of modern girls, we have time-warped with the best of 'em." Lorelai told Rory, referring to her own fifties clothes, and the slightly less extravagant clothes she practically forced onto her daughter, assuring her it would be all the more fun to 'get in the mood'. They were walking down the street, leaning on one another, Rory barely able to stand upright without support.

"Mm," Rory mumbled, eyes still half-closed.

"How ya doing there, champ?" Lorelai asked, nudging Rory with her shoulder.

"Early," was all Rory could say, too tired to form coherent sentences.

"Yes, it's a tad early."

"No sun," Rory pointed out, still bleary.

"Well, he's not up yet," Lorelai retorted.

Rory frowned, "I can't even open my eyes."

"That's okay, there's nothing to see. Kirk's in a Speedo, Taylor's in a skirt, Al's in ass-less chaps."

"Oh my God, stop. I'm never gonna be able to close my eyes again," Rory said desperately, trying to rid her self of the disgusting images.

Lorelai laughed, but continued pulling her daughter along to the gym, where everyone was setting up and getting ready.

-

-

-

"Any couple without a number will be disqualified. All couples must be touching at all times. All couples must remain moving at all times. The only time you may stop moving or stop touching is when you hear this horn." He blew his air horn, "That sound means you have ten minutes. Ten minutes to get a drink, to eat a snack, take a rest, or whatever it is you can do in ten minutes. And in addition to the ten-minute rest periods, every person participating has been issued a yellow emergency card. In case of emergency, a contestant may hold up the card and leave the floor for ten minutes. If your partner remains on the floor and moving the entire time, then the owner of the yellow card may rejoin them and the contest. First aid is available in Miss Patty's. Please, remember, that if you feel yourself getting lightheaded or having shooting pains or any other stroke-like symptoms, please move off to the side so that your collapse will not get in the way of the other dancers. All right, people, lace your shoes, pin those curls, because we only have three minutes left until we start," Taylor announced through his megaphone.

All the dancers were getting situated on the dance floor, Lorelai badgering Luke to hurry up so they could get a prime spot. Rory met up with Jess earlier, he just about as lethargic as her, and they moved off to a corner in the bleachers, laying back and resting their eyes until the marathon began.

"All right, folks. Everybody on the floor. We're two minutes away. I repeat, everybody on the floor, we are two minutes away," Taylor declared.

Jess squinted one eye open when he felt someone sit on his lap.

"Sorry," Rory said, moving to get off, "You were just sitting there, looking all comfortable, and you know me, not thinking-"

He smirked and pulled her back down, "It's okay. I don't mind."

"Thanks," she said blushing, but scooting back into his chest.

A minute later, they both looked up to see Taylor standing at the podium, "All right, everybody, grab your partners, make sure your numbers are securely fastened, and let the countdown begin!"

The voices of almost everyone could be heard counting down, "Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one!"

"It's showtime!" Taylor called, sitting down, but still watching the dance intently for cheaters or anyone to drop out.

-

-

-

Six hours later, and many couples had dropped out. Kirk, his partner, Luke and Lorelai were still going strong, and Andrew and his date had just gotten into their annual fight, meaning everything was going pretty smoothly.

"Do you wanna bail?" Jess asked Rory, leaning forward closer to Rory and sticking his book into his back pocket.

She looked at him, sighing, "I guess we can go get something to eat or whatever. Let me go tell my mom and that we're going. But, we have to be fast. I don't wanna miss anything."

He nodded, happy with the situation, and leaned back against the bleachers, watching Rory and her Mom have a conversation while Lorelai was trying to get Luke to flip her. It was pretty amusing, actually.

"Let' s go," Rory said a few minutes later, garbing his hand.

He got up and let her lead him down the metal steps and out into the empty town.

"What's opened?" Rory asked, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight.

"It doesn't matter. We can go to Luke's. I have a key," he said, pulling the said item out of his pocket.

"Won't he get mad?" Rory asked, hesitant.

"Nah. I live there, too, remember?"

"Okay- if you're sure," she said, following him towards the diner, "But whose going to make the food?"

"I work at a diner. This diner," he pointed out.

"You cook?" she asked, wide eyed and surprised.

"Nothing big, but I can cook burgers and stuff like that," he told her, opening the door to Luke's, "Plus we'll get to be alone."

He locked the door after she came in and threw the key on table near the front. Rory sat down at a stool, while he went behind the counter and started a pot of coffee.

"So, what is it that you want to eat?" he asked after a few moments.

"It doesn't matter. Sandwich, burger, fries? Anything is fine."

He nodded, "Two burgers and fries it is."

Jess went to the back and grabbed some frozen patties and a bag of fries. He threw the icy potatoes into the fryer, and turned it up. He then fired up the grill and stuck the two beef hamburgers on it.

She watched him continue to cook silently, admiring his fluid and graceful motions; almost like a cat, she thought.

He turned around when he heard her giggle and arched his eyebrows, "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," she promised him, "Just picturing you as a cat."

He nodded, confused, but didn't pry further. He could never understand that girl sometimes.

"Food's done," he said ten minutes later.

"Yum," she answered, rubbing her hands together, "I'm starved."

He smirked, "Of course." He handed her a plate piled high with food and sat down next to her with a similar plate of his own.

She greedily picked up the burger and took a hungry bite. "What?" she asked him, noting his gaze on her.

"Nothing." He shook his head, "Just watching you eat."

She turned pink and set the patty down, "Why?"

He motioned for her not to stop and took a bite of his own hamburger, "No reason. I just like looking at you," he said simply.

She flushed even brighter, but ignored his comment and proceeded to finish eating, this time at a more lady-appropriate pace.

-

-

-

"Thanks for lunch," she told him, one arm wrapped around his back walking into the gym. He had his arm slung casually around her waist, as well.

"It was nothing," he told her, brushing it off.

"I wonder if Mom and Luke are still dancing…" speculated out loud, heading back toward there little spot in the bleachers.

"Um…" He brought his gaze down to the dancing couples, "There," he pointed to the wall adjacent to the podium, "It looks like your mom is in desperate need of coffee, though."

"It does, doesn't it?" She looked at Lorelai leaning against Luke's shoulder, both rocking slowly to the music, eyes shut, "But they look pretty comfortable- I don't think we should interrupt them quite yet."

"That's probably the best idea. Luke would kill me if I was the person to separate him and Lorelai," Jess stated, sitting down and pulling Rory down next to him.

"Yeah. But Mom doesn't look to upset, either virtually smashed up against him like that."

Jess gave a small laugh "You're right on that one."

"I like your hair," Rory said, suddenly and out of the blue.

He raised his eyebrows, "Where did that come from?"

With cheeks tinted pink, she looked down, "Sorry. That just kind of popped into my head and came out."

"Like the cat comment earlier today?" he asked her.

She laughed, "Yeah. Sorta.

-

-

-

Twenty hours had passed when Taylor blew the horn signifying the run-around.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, on your marks. . .get set. . .and go!" Taylor said, a little tipsily, "Round and round they go, but when the song stops, nobody knows! But the last five couples that finish behind the red line are automatically out, so hold onto your partner and move, move, move!"

"You're getting too much pleasure out of this, Taylor," Miss Patty said, settling back down and letting out a besieged sigh.

"What's this supposed to be?" Jess asked Rory, not having been paying attention to what Taylor was saying.

"It's the run-around. They all run, um, around." She giggled, "Sorry, I'm tired. Really, really tired."

He nodded his head, "Me too." Pause. "Do we have to stay for the whole thing?"

"Yeah. Mom would murder me if I left her." She turned to him, "You can go if you want, though; no one's forcing you to stay."

He shook his head, "Nah. I'm good. Only, what, ten more hours?" he shrugged sarcastically.

"Yeah." Ten hours," Rory said sleepily, "Hey, do you mind if I lay down? I'm gonna pass out if I stay upright like this any longer."

"Hold on one second," he said, getting comfortable against the wall. She went to lay down next to him, but he pulled her up and set her head in his lap.

"You don't have to do this," she protested half-heartedly, yawning.

"I know. I don't mind. Take a nap. I'll wake you up if anything big happens," Jess assured her.

"Thanks," she said, before closing her eyes and relaxing against him.

He gently kissed her forehead before leaning back himself and letting his own eyes shut. He succumbed to sleep within five minutes.

-

-

-

"…think they slept through all of it?" she heard someone talking hazily.

"I don't know…her on his lap…wake them…should…?" was most of what she could make out.

She tiredly opened her eyes, not sure where she was at first.

"Hey, sleeping beauty's awake," Lorelai said, amusement evident in her voice.

She sat up as softly as she could, "Where am I?" she asked, looking around.

"Asleep on Jess," Lorelai stated.

Rory looked down at a waking Jess, and back to the almost empty gym, finally resting her gaze on her mother, who looked like she hadn't slept in days.

"Oh…the marathon. Who won?" she asked, scooting off Jess' lap and next to Lorelai.

Lorelai grinned a hundred watt, exhausted smile, "We did," she said proudly.

"You beat Kirk? Where's the trophy?"

"Luke has it. He's taking it to the diner. I convinced him to set it up so we can shove it in Kirk's face like he always did to me," Lorelai told her before turning to Jess with a smirk plastered on her face, "Have a nice nap?"

He scowled at her, "I'm going home." He stood up and grabbed his coat, "See ya Rory," he said, giving her a quick kiss and strolling out the doors.

"That was cute," Lorelai teased, motioning for Rory to get up as well.

"Shut up," Rory said good-naturedly, "We just fell asleep."

"I know. The whole town was standing there and gossiping about how adorable it was," Lorelai enlightened.

Rory groaned, "Please tell me you're kidding."

"Wish I was, babe," Lorelai said, shaking her head in delight.

"Fine. Let them talk. I just want to go home and sleep until tomorrow morning," Rory stated, following her Mom out the door, "I'm beat."

"You? I did all the dancing!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"All I saw was you practically on top of Luke, It was like your bodies were conjoined or something. It definitely called for a 'dirty,'" Rory said, snickering.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Lorelai objected, "It was simply platonic."

"Yeah, and green tea beats coffee any day," Rory snorted.

"Whatever. We'll agree to disagree. Let's get home and sleep. I have a trophy to gloat about tomorrow," Lorelai said, proudly.

"Sounds good to me."

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own a thing.**

**A/N: Whoo. Longest chapter I've ever written. I was thinking about splitting it up into halves, but decided against it, so- be glad, I guess. Please tell me what you think. I worked hard on this chapter with the Rory/Jess interactions and stuff, so give me some feedback. Anything is great. I love reviews. Love 'em almost as much as Milo. (Crazy, I know) Anyway, thanks for reading!**


	5. A Deep Fried Diner Thanksgiving

**Chapter 5- A Deep-Fried Diner Thanksgiving **

"Okay, now, practical question…how are we going to eat four Thanksgiving dinners?" Rory asked her Mom, walking down the street. It was the first day of break, and they were on their way to Luke's for their morning coffee.

"Let's see…first is the Kim's, but theirs is always really early, so we got that covered. Next would be Sookie's- apparently Jackson's inviting all his manly men, so we can just pop in and pop out; no one will miss us, especially since my bet is that Sookie will be a wee bit tipsy before the turkey's even started cookin'," explained Lorelai, using her fingers to count off.

"So, those are easy-peasy. We still have the Grandparents and Luke's; how are supposed to still be hungry enough?" Rory raised her eyebrows questioningly.

Lorelai scoffed, "What are we if not word-champion eaters? Besides, Mrs. Kim probably will load us down with Tof-urkey, which I'm guessin' ain't gonna cut it for us girls."

Rory nodded, and pulled open the door to the diner, "We're two for four now. Luke's is the next one, right."

"Uh-hmm." She sat down at her usual table, Rory following. "His will most likely be the best 'cause the food will be edible, we won't have to wear stuffy dresses, and the company's good-_ish_."

"What do you mean by '-_ish_'" Rory asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

Lorelai waved it off, "No reason. And last, but not lea-… last we have Emily and Richard with their snooty French friends."

"You're changing the subject," Rory accused.

Lorelai assured her otherwise, "No I'm not, just simply getting back on track. You changed it in the first place."

"I thought you said you would be nicer about Jess," Rory said. "What has he done wrong?"

Lorelai was about to retort, when Luke arrived with an order pad, "What'll it be?"

"Saved by the diner-man," Rory mumbled, but turned to Luke, perking up, "Just some chocolate chip pancakes and bacon. And coffee." She paused, "Is Jess not working today?"

He shook his head, "I let him sleep in. I've been working him pretty hard recently, but," he looked at the lock on the back wall, "He should we getting up soon."

"Can I go…" she trailed off, pointing towards the curtain.

"You can try," Luke said, "But I don't think you'll be able to do it. He would sleep through World War III if given the chance."

"Thanks," she said, getting up. As she started walking away she heard Luke and her mom arguing about the healthiness of her diet, and smiled to herself, not understanding how they both could be so oblivious.

She pulled the curtain to the side and stepped through it, hearing the sounds of the diner become muffled as she started walking up the stairs. As she reached the top, she gently knocked on the door, thinking that Jess might have gotten up already and was reading or something.

Rory waited for a few seconds before deciding he wasn't up, and twisted the doorknob, pushing the door open.

She bit her lip, letting her gaze wander around the apartment. She'd never seen it before, and it really seemed like Luke and Jess. She went over to Jess' room and peeked inside the door, seeing if Jess was there. He was lying spread-out and shirtless, on his back, covers bunched round his waist, and a book laying on the side of the bed next to him.

Rory smiled at the sight, and the ever-present smirk on his face even in sleep. She wondered if he was dreaming, and if he was, what about. She shook her head, emptying herself of the thoughts, and went over to the bed, sitting down beside him.

She heard it creak gently, but he barely even stirred. She heard him snoring, and thought how cute it sounded, not at all bothered by it.

"Jess," she whispered quietly, not wanting to spook him out of his sleep, "Time to get up."

He must not have heard her, so she continued, "Jess, it's almost eleven and I wanna do something today." His nose wrinkled a little in annoyance, but still, he didn't wake.

Rory sighed, and bit her lip thinking of what she wanted to do to wake him up.

With her right hand, she softly shook him. Still nothing. 'Luke was right,' she thought, 'I don't think he'd wake up if someone came in to steal all of his Hemingway books.'

She decided to try a different tactic, and leaned over the bed and near his face.

She lightly kissed his forehead, then his nose, each eye, and finally his mouth. She felt him responding to the kiss, and smiled, happy she figured out a fun way to get up.

After a few moments she pulled back, and he sleepily opened his eyes, "Morning," he said, voice full of both confusion and drowsiness.

"Morning," she returned cheerfully.

He arched his eyebrows, "What are you doing here?"

She crawled up next to him, sitting up against the headboards and leaning against his shoulder, "Oh, Luke said I could wake you up. I wanted to do something today, unless, you know, you have something else planned, and in that case-"

He stopped her, "No plans. What is it you wanted to do?"

"I dunno," she shrugged, "Doesn't really matter. School's out, so no homework."

He nodded, "I see. We can catch a movie or something."

She beamed, Really? I haven't been in ages. Dean and I could never agree on something, so we just never went," she told him, frowning. "Promise me you'll never drag me into see Lord of The Rings twenty times."

"I can definitely promise you that," he assured her, pulling a face. "I could barely sit through it the first time."

"Oh, it wasn't that bad, but this conversation is getting a little boring; let's talk about something else."

He casually rolled his eyes, "What do we talk about then?"

"Um, oh! I heard you got a car…" she said, trailing off expectantly.

"Yep."

Rory frowned, and poked him in the side, "Well, where'd you get it? How'd you pay for it? Why'd you need it? Does my Mom know you got it, 'cause I think she'll have a major freak out if she finds out you're behind the wheel again."

"Slow down. It's not a big deal, Rory. Really," he told her, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

She looked at him skeptically, "Come on, if it's not a big deal, tell me."

Jess sighed, resigned, "Whatever." He ran a hand through his messy, gel-less hair, "I bought it from Gypsy a couple of weeks ago. She gave me a good deal."

"Where'd you get the money?"

"I have…For the last few months I've been going to a place that gives me money for my services," he cryptically explained, exhaling deeply.

She arched a perplexed eyebrow, "What, are you a gigolo or something?"

His eyes widened, "What? No."

Rory laughed at the thought, "Then what do you do? It sounds like you got a job other than Luke's."

He nodded, "Yeah, it would seem so." He pointed to a pair of jeans laying on the back of a chair, "Go get the jeans over there for me."

She looked at him, puzzled, but complied. Scooting her legs off the bed, she walked the few feet to his pants and brought them over to him, a light bluish rising on her cheeks.

Jess smirked at her when she sat back down, this time across from him at the foot of the bed. He reached into the back pocket of the jeans a pulled out a small plastic card. He handed it over to her, and she took it, a bewildered look on her face.

"What's this," she asked, pulling it towards her face.

"Turn it over," Jess instructed.

She narrowed her eyes to get a better look, while the corners of her lips turned upwards in amusement, "Is this what I think it is?" she asked.

"Yep," he replied simply.

"_You_ work at Wal-Mart. You _work_ at Wal-Mart. You work at _Wal-Mart_." She was taunting him disbelievingly.

He shook his head and made to grab his name tag back, "I already told you- it's not that big of a deal. Just drop it."

She finally stopped giggling and handed the card to him, "Sorry. I'm done. But Wal-Mart?"

"Rory," he warned. "It's nothing. Just some extra cash to do whatever with."

She nodded, "Yeah. Okay." She brightened, "Hey, get up, get dressed, and get out. We were planning on seeing a movie, right?"

"Yeah. I'll meet you downstairs in twenty minutes."

"Okay," she said, leaning forward on her knees. "Hurry."

She kissed him gently, and after a few seconds, pulled away softly, "Go."

He nodded grudgingly, but lifted off the covers and slung his feet to the floor, "I'm going, I'm going."

"Good," she replied. "I'm going to get some coffee and tell Mom the plans."

"Okay," he called from already in the bathroom. "I'm getting in the shower right now."

She smiled, satisfied, and went back down the stairs, a happy spring in her step.

-

-

-

"How'd you like the movie?" asked Rory, coming out of the theater, arm linked with Jess'.

His brow furrowed, "It was okay. I've seen better, I've seen worse."

"Vague, are we?" she said, unhooking her arm and pivoting around to face him.

"What can I say? Vague is my middle name," he retorted.

"Of course. So, Jess Vague Mariano, what's next?" she asked, sitting on a bench and pulling him down next to her.

"Nothing planned. What time are you guys coming over for Thanksgiving tomorrow?" he asked, withdrawing a book from his back pocket.

She leaned against him casually, "Um, somewhere in between Sookie and the Grandparents. Truthfully, the diner's the only meal I'm really looking forward to. Lane's is going to be too, um 'Korean', Sookie's too masculine, and Emily and Richard's will be very French. And let me tell you, French was not my best subject."

"That's a lot of dinners," he stated, leaning back.

"We'll skip the rolls," she told him. "Besides, yours is the main event."

He nodded, content, "Good to know."

They sat quietly for a few minutes until Rory started talking again. "I'm hungry," she said, pretty much out of the blue.

He gave up on reading, "Let's go get some food, then."

She got up and smiled down at him, "Thank you."

He sighed and rolled his eyes, but let Rory drag him towards the diner for some much needed lunch.

-

-

-

Lorelai sneaked quietly to her daughter's bedroom the next morning, planning to wake her up for some Thanksgiving shopping, but when she got close to the door, she heard talking. Pausing, she listened in to Rory's side of the apparent phone conversation:

_"…But Yale is so much closer and is just of good as a school." _

_"My grandpa went there, actually." _

_"No, I don't think so. It's just that all my life, it's been _Harvard, Harvard, Harvard,_ you know?" _

_"Jess…Yeah, it's still most likely going to be Harvard, but I applied to _ _Princeton__ and Yale anyways, along with some other schools..." _

Lorelai gently ducked away from the bedroom and into the kitchen, where she plopped down on a chair, digesting what she just heard. It sounded like Rory was considering colleges other than Harvard, but that was crazy, right? She shook her head, deciding to talk to Rory as soon as she was done with the phone.

She got up and poured herself a fresh cup of coffee, leaning against the counter while still nursing the mug, the hot coffee warming her hands. She brought it up to her lips, taking a generous sip, when she heard Rory hang the phone back on the receiver.

She lifted her eyes above the rim of the cup, "Hey."

Rory smiled at her mom, going for her own mug of coffee, "Morning. What's planned for the day?"

"Oh, we need to get flowers and some cranberry sauce for Mrs. Kim. But I was wondering; who were you talking on the phone to this early?" Lorelai asked with a stab at flippancy.

Rory answered obliviously, "Jess, and it's really not that early. Only what, nine or ten o' clock?"

"I guess." She paused, drinking the last of her coffee. "Talk about anything interesting? Maybe schools?" Lorelai hinted.

"Um, not really anything important, Mom. What's up?" Rory asked with a lifted eyebrow.

Lorelai let out a breath, her hair blowing out of her eyes in the process, "I heard you saying something about college and the possibility of not going to Harvard."

The younger Gilmore stalled, "I, uh…I guess that might have been mentioned in our conversation. See, I was telling him that maybe another college would be just as good. Chilton basically forces you to apply to many different schools, and Harvard's not the only good college."

"So, we're you going to tell me this ever?" asked Lorelai. "Or were you just planning on lying to me for the next four years?"

"Mom! Quit freaking out. I'm probably going to choose to go to Harvard, but backups are important. Some might be even better choices. For instance, there's Yale. It's close to Stars Hollow and Grandpa is alumni, so I have a pretty high chance of getting in. It's still a great school, maybe even better than Harvard," Rory explained calmly.

Lorelai sighed again, "Yeah. Just a little worried there. And this is for you, right? Not the grandparents?"

"Definitely. And nothing's for sure. I'm not even accepted into anywhere yet," Rory pointed out.

"You're right, yet again," said Lorelai dramatically. "What do you say we get to shopping, then?"

"Seems like an excellent plan."

-

-

-

"What's on the list?" Rory asked, following her Mom down the street an hour later.

"Flowers for everyone we're visiting and cranberry sauce for the Kims," Lorelai said, stopping in front of the town square.

Rory thought for a second, "Tums."

"You mean amateur pills?" Lorelai scoffed.

"Just in case."

Lorelai gave in. "Okay, Tums."

Rory looked at the window in front of her and saw Dean working in Doose's. Lorelai noticed her daughter's gaze, and offered, "I'll do Doose's."

"I'll do the flowers," Rory responded, relieved. "Thanks."

She walked over to the displays of flowers and picked out a few dozen. She paid for them, and was just browsing, when she felt someone behind her.

"Hey there," came Jess' voice.

She turned around, "Hey."

He leaned in to kiss her, and she readily responded, wrapping her arms around his neck. A little while later, they both pulled a way, and smiled at one another.

"Hey."

"Hey." She grinned back at him, and pulled him in for a hug, feeling comfortable in his tight embrace. She buried her head in the crook of his neck, and just relished in the 'Jess smell.'

They stayed like that for a few minutes, until Rory heard a light cough. She turned to the source of the interruption, and blushed, seeing it was her Mom's smirking face, "Hello Jess."

He nodded and backed away, shoving his hands into his pockets awkwardly, "Lorelai."

"We've got to get heading to Mrs. Kim's soon, so say your good-byes and catch up. Okay?" she asked for confirmation, rotating towards Rory.

"That's fine. It'll be just a minute."

Lorelai nodded and headed down the street in the direction of the Kim's house, her bags slung unceremoniously over her shoulder.

Rory turned back to Jess, "I'll see you later, alright?"

"Yeah." He kissed her on the cheek before going the opposite way she was going. "Later."

She smiled, and ran to catch up with her Mom, taking a bag of stuff and showing off the flowers, both girls laughing and talking excitedly all the way to Lane's house.

-

-

-

"So, which do you think was more amusing, Mrs. Kim's 'Tof-urkey' dinner or Jackson's 'deep-fried' assembly of food?" Lorelai asked, walking towards the diner with Rory hot on her heals.

"Ah, that's a hard one. It was a little funny to see Sookie so drunk, and watching Lane and Dave try to hide their knowing each other from Mrs. Kim was also entertaining, so I guess it would be a tie," Rory told her. "But Luke's will be my favorite, I think."

The elder Gilmore nodded, "Yeah. I can't wait for Luke's famous turkey dinner. I am saddened every year to think it will be another three hundred sixty-five days for another stuffed turkey, cranberry sauce, and the perfect apple pie he only makes during the holidays."

Rory agreed, opening the door to the diner, "I know. Can you believe we're still hungry?"

"Actually I can. We've eaten more than this, and don't forget; there's always room for Luke's," Lorelai said, following into the diner.

"Hey everybody," she announced, turning toward Babette and Morey. Rory just smiled.

"Oh, hey there doll-faces. Happy Thanksgiving," Babette addressed happily.

Morey greeted them as well, "Yeah, Happy Thanksgiving."

"Hey," Rory said to the couple, grinning. She handed over a bouquet of flowers to Luke, who just walked up to the girls.

"What's this?" Luke asked, motioning at the flowers in his hands.

Rory looked at him slightly exasperatedly, "Flowers."

"What do I do with them?"

"Ugh, not this again," groaned Lorelai dramatically.

Rory stood in, "Put them in a vase with water."

Luke protested, "I don't have a vase." He was still holding the flowers awkwardly in his hands.

"You do this every year," Lorelai reminded him, pseudo-annoyed.

Luke sighed exaggeratedly, "I don't have vases."

Lorelai rolled her eyes, "Buy a vase."

"But I don't need a vase 'cause I never have flowers," he argued.

"Except when we bring you flowers every year on Thanksgiving. Buy a vase." Lorelai pointed this out, while Rory watched in amusement.

"Stop bringing me flowers," Luke stated simply.

"Stop bringing me flowers," she repeated mockingly. "I knew you were gonna say that because you say the same thing. We have this same exact conversation every year."

"And every year you point that out."

"And every year you point that out."

"And every year you point that out."

Rory interrupted, "And then every year we put the flowers on the counter and forget the ugliness ever happened."

Lorelai sighed, resigned, but smiling, "Well, at least we have a tradition."

"Good." He paused, looking towards the counter, "I'll be right back. That's our table over there." He pointed to an empty table near the middle of the diner, and the girls walked over to it, hanging their coats on the back if the chairs.

Sitting down, they started talking about their Christmas plans.

"This year's Christmas is going to be the best yet," Lorelai announced excitedly. "Richard and Emily Gilmore are away all break and won't be back 'till next year."

Rory rolled her eyes, "What about the apple tarts?"

Lorelai's brow furrowed, "It's a tough trade in. No grandparents for no yummy tarts? But, it'll be worth it," she assured her daughter.

"Fine. If you say so." Rory looked up to where Luke and Jess were talking behind the counter and caught Jess' eye. He shot her a barely perceptible smile-like smirk before turning his attention back to Luke, who was gesturing widely with his arms.

"I do," Lorelai responded, pointedly ignoring her daughter's flirting.

Rory peered over the counter at Jess, again, and he motioned for her to come over. She wrinkled her brow and tucked her hair behind her ear, confused, but got up, telling Lorelai she'd be right back.

"What's up-?" she started, but Jess put a finger over her lips and grabbed her by the arm gently pulling her towards the storage room. Neither noticed the stares and strange looks they were getting from the townspeople, but Rory was still a little puzzled.

As soon as he shut the door, she asked him what he was doing.

He smirked at her, and took a step closer, "There are too many people out there," he said casually.

"For what?" she asked, wetting her lips timidly.

"This," was all he said before backing her up against the wall and kissing her. She smiled against his mouth, bringing a hand up his chest and around his neck, playing with his hair at the back of his head. His hands went to her waist while his mouth moved towards her neck. They continued like that for a few minutes before she noticed his hand edging its way up the back of her shirt.

She pulled back breathlessly. "We can't do this here. We should stop."

He shot her a look, "It's completely private. What are the chances of someone walking in?"

Rory shrugged and relented, "Fine, but just for a few more min-"

He cut her off with his mouth, and she happily complied, continuing to let mouths and hands wander.

"Ah, jeez!" Luke shouted, opening the door to the storeroom. Rory and Jess jumped apart while Luke backed away, arm over his eyes. Rory's blushed and ducked her head.

"You can open your eyes now, Uncle Luke…we're both decent," he said, smirking. Rory mumbled something quietly, while straightening out her clothes and hair as best she could.

Luke lowered his arm, but barely squinted an eye open. Finally seeing that nothing was amiss, he sighed and let his arms rest at his sides, looking at the two teens; one guilty and the other…not. "Rory, your Mom's waiting for you. Jess, start refilling some coffee. And the turkey's ready as soon as you guys sit down."

Rory nodded, still embarrassed and followed Luke into the dinner, Jess trailing behind her. She tried to ignore the stares of the patrons, but they were getting to her. She sat down across from her Mom who had an eyebrow raised questioningly.

"Don't ask," Rory grumbled, letting her head drop to the table. "Just don't ask a thing."

Lorelai grinned innocently, "Wasn't going to. I was just going to say that your earring is attached to your sweater."

Rory groaned and looked down, hastily reaching for the piece of jewelry and quickly stuffing it into her pocket, quickly followed by the removal of the other one.

Luke and Jess came over to the table a few seconds later and sat down, both bringing over platters of food. "Mmmm…" Lorelai said as she smelt the food, "Look's delicious. And I'm starved."

Rory put on a smile, still avoiding Luke's eyes, "Me too."

"Not exactly hungry for the food, though, is she?" Lorelai muttered under her breath.

Luke shifted uncomfortably in his chair while Rory shot her a glare. "Thanks for that, oh so, appropriate comment," she said.

Jess just shook his head and spooned some stuffing onto his plate. If boys will be boys, you can always count on Gilmores being Gilmores.

-

-

-

"Get more trash cans," Jess said, irritated. He and Luke were arguing, Jess with a garbage bag slung over his shoulder.

"I don't need more," Luke protested, arms crossed in front of his chest.

Jess sighed, annoyed, "You make me run around town for a place to dump this."

"Just dump it in one of Taylor's bins. It gets it out of here and it'll drive Taylor crazy. It's a win-win," he pointed out. They noticed Lorelai and Rory walking towards them, and turned to the girls.

"Hi guys," Lorelai greeted, waving.

"We're out of food," Luke told her firmly.

Lorelai gestured with her hand exaggeratedly, "Oh, please, we're not eating for a year."

Rory chimed in, "Or 'til tomorrow morning."

"Whichever comes first," Lorelai said, nodding. She swiveled towards Jess, "Hi Saint Nick."

He rolled his eyes, "Tell him he needs to get more trash cans."

"Just go," Luke said, sighing.

Jess shook his head and walked in the direction of the trash bins, Rory following behind him.

"I still say you should get more tra…" Jess started, thinking it was Luke.

Rory smiled and kissed him hard. "Hi," she said, pulling back.

"Hi," Jess repeated, trying to control his breathing. He looked down and noticed the trash bag dumped out on the floor.

"Later," Rory waved, grinning. She headed back in the direction of the dinner.

Jess bent down to pick up the garbage strewn on the sidewalk, when he felt someone come near him. He looked up and tightened his jaw, seeing it was Dean.

"Nothing to say?" Dean asked, taunting.

"Nope. Guess I'm all talked out." He picked up a few more pieces of trash lying around, trying to ignore him.

"You know, when all this happened with you and me and Rory, I figured I'd just stay out of everyone's way, that that would be easiest. But now, I'm looking at you and I'm thinking, I'm gonna run from him? The Glad Man. This is my town, I'm not hiding. And I don't have be remotely calm around you anymore, and I like that feeling. I like it a lot. Happy Thanksgiving, Jess." Dean walked away, a satisfied smile on his face, while Jess just watched him go.

He turned back around, intending to get the bag and dump it, when he saw Rory, standing a few feet away.

"I can't believe he would say something like that," Rory said, shocked.

Jess exhaled deeply, "It's no big deal. Go back to the diner- I'll be there in just a second."

Rory shook her head fiercely, "No. Right now I wanna go after Dean and yell at him. I can't believe how big of a jerk he is. I mean, I thought he was a nice guy. When we broke up, I thought, 'Hey, maybe we can still be friends. Make it work…' but now, now I don't think I even want to be acquaintances." She closed her eyes, "C'mon…I'll keep you company while you dump the bag."

She marched up to him and hooked her arm with his, almost dragging him down the street. He was speechless, and somewhat happy that he didn't have to worry about Dean anymore, but also a little worried for Rory. She looked pissed.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to get out. I had most of the story done, but couldn't quite seem to get the ending. I don't think I did too well, either, but- oh well. Please tell me what you think. Feedback is like oxygen to a writer. Reviews are the thing that makes us giddy and excited. Thanks for reading...**


	6. That'll Do, Dean

**Chapter 6- That'll Do, Dean **

Jess wrapped an arm over Rory's shoulder, leaning in and kissing her on the cheek. She smiled up at him, and slung her own arm around his neck. She kissed him, bringing her other hand to his back. Smirking, he returned her kiss readily, and proceeded to make his way down her neck.

Basically, they were attempting to walk down the street and productively make-out at the same time. Was it working? Debatable.

"You know what just occurred to me?" she asked in-between kisses, "That we are very fortunate to have good teeth."

"Yes, very fortunate," he replied absently, continuing his ministrations.

"Can you imagine if braces were involved in this interaction?" she smiled.

"It'd be a bloodbath."

She broke away for a second, breathing labored, "I can't catch my breath."

He smirked, "You're not supposed to."

Shooting him a playful look, she continued, "Hey, listen, Thursday night is the Stars Hollow High Winter Carnival."

She looked at him expectantly.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, I thought we could go, meet Lane there."

He sighed, but otherwise didn't consider her suggestion, "Nope."

"But it'd be really fun. They'll have really bad games and really bad food and the marching band will play and –"

He cut her off, "Rory, I'm doing some of my best work here and you're just talking right through it."

She raised her eyebrows, "Come on. Just for a little while. You didn't come to the Christmas Party at the Inn last month; this'll make up for it."

He paused for a second, contemplating. "I don't do these town things. I don't fit in."

"A few hours tops. We can mock all the bad music and watch the kids humiliating themselves. Afterwards, we can do whatever you want to do."

"Anything?" he asked suggestively, smirking.

She cocked her head to the side and smiled coyly, "Well, I guess you'll just have to find out. Are you coming to the carnival or not?"

Rolling his eyes, he reluctantly agreed, "Fine. We'll go, mock, and be back. No dawdling. Deal?"

She grinned and kissed him. Pulling back, she nodded, "Deal."

-

-

-

The couple was walking into the diner, arms wrapped around each other.

Rory was laughing at something Jess said, presumably about some ridiculous movie they'd recently seen.

"So, you want some help with your homework?" he offered.

She gave him a 'You're kidding me' look, "You're going to help me? "

"Yup." He nodded.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but how?"

"Come upstairs and I'll show you," he said, pointing to the staircase.

She smiled, "Upstairs?"

"Yeah."

She bit her lip, "Well, you know how important my education is to me…"

He gave her a small grin, "Yes, I do."

Just as she was about to follow him up the stairs, Lorelai came barging in the diner, hands full of shopping bags. "Rory, hey. Thank God, I need help. Where're you going?"

Rory gave Jess an apologetic smile and detached herself from him. She turned to her mom, "Nowhere."

Jess headed towards the counter with a quick, "See ya," while Rory plopped herself down next to Lorelai at a table.

"Were you guys gonna go upstairs and kiss?" Lorelai taunted, grinning deviously.

Rory tried to change the subject, "Wow, look at all the bags."

It worked.

"Yes, I went shopping for my father's birthday present today, which was great for about fifteen minutes, until it all came back to me."

"What?"

"The fact that I totally suck at buying my father presents," Lorelai stated simply.

"He'll like whatever you get him," Rory assured her, redirecting her eyes to Jess who was filling up someone's coffee mug. She noticed he had a book in his back pocket, but couldn't quite make out the title.

"Rory? You in there?" Lorelai waved her hand in front of her daughter's face.

Shaking her head, she brought her gaze back to Lorelai, "Yeah. Sorry. What was it you were showing me?"

"Option number one – a state of the art, high tech, titanium bathroom scale."

Rory gave her an incredulous look.

"What? He has weight," Lorelai pointed out.

"Yes, but I'm not sure that his birthday is the time to remind him of it."

Lorelai sighed and dug in her bag for the second choice. While she was doing this, Rory looked back at Jess' pocket, curious at what book he was reading. She leaned back in her chair, until…

_Crash! _

Rory scrambled off of the floor, a deep crimson blush rising in her cheeks. All eyes turned to her, including her boyfriends' who had a smug smirk to go with it.

She quickly got back into her chair, keeping her head ducked and avoiding everyone's gaze.

Lorelai intervened. "Hey, people- nothing to look at. Wouldn't want your delicious food deprived of the attention it deserves."

A few people gave Lorelai strange looks, but she ignored it and faced her daughter. Leaning in, she said, "What was _that_ about?"

Rory fought down a groan, "Nothing. I wanted to see what book he was reading and I just lost my balance."

"It kinda looked to me as if you were staring at his a…"

Rory cut her off, "Nope."

"I mean, it would be okay if you were- he is your boyfriend," she said.

"Again, nope. It was all very innocent. PG…G, really," Rory assured.

Lorelai sighed and went back to her bags, "Okay, if that's what you say."

"It is." Rory snuck a look at Jess who was standing at the counter, ringing up some man's order. He gave her a suggestive smirk, and she had to fight to suppress her blush.

She averted her attention back to Lorelai's purchases, "What else did you get?"

"Oh, well…" Lorelai continued to suggest different ideas, all ridiculous, each one more so than the last, so in the end, Rory offered to do the gift-shopping for her.

Lorelai agreed happily, "Ugh, my God, I love you. You are my angel."

"I'll forever be known as that. Don't forget."

-

-

-

"Hey, Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"Where did all these things come from?" Lorelai walked into her daughter's room and saw that she was pointing to all the stuff Dean brought by earlier.

"Oh, um…Dean dropped it off a few hours ago. I guess it's really over between you two."

Rory shrugged, "It has been for awhile. I'm with Jess, now."

"Yeah, but…I dunno, I just kept thinking that you and Dean might become you and Dean again." A beat, "You have before."

"No, definitely not. Dean is one hundred percent over. It was nice while it lasted, but I'm not going down that road again," Rory said.

Lorelai sat down on Rory's bed, "Okay. But, isn't this a little strange for you?"

"What?" Rory asked, wrinkling her brow.

She motioned between the box and Rory, "Just this. Dean bringing the stuff back, the whole end of relationship give-back thing."

"Not really." Rory opened the box and peeked inside. Seeing something, she bent down and picked it up.

"Hey! My Bjork CD! I was looking for that!" she exclaimed.

Lorelai got up and went over to where Rory was kneeling down with the stuff. "You know, it really is okay to be a little weirded out."

"Mom, I'm perfectly okay. I made the right decision regarding Dean and Jess, and I'm happier now with Jess than I ever was with Dean. Especially seeing how cruel he was to Jess." She mumbled the last part angrily.

Lorelai frowned, "What do you mean?"

"Did I never tell you?" At Lorelai's shake of the head, she continued. "Way back at thanksgiving, I heard Dean totally almost threaten Jess saying stuff like, 'I don't have to be nice to you anymore' and 'This is my town, not yours, and I'm not hiding.' Jess didn't do anything; he was just taking out the trash!"

"Dean said that? That doesn't sound like him."

"I know, but I saw it with my own eyes. I realized that he has a side I don't want to get to know, and that it was good I broke it off then," Rory said sadly.

"Wow. It's just…I didn't expect it."

Rory set the CD on her bed and sighed, "Me neither. But I should have. I never really believed that all those disagreements and fights he and Jess had were always Jess' fault. Maybe if I realized it sooner…"

"Yeah." Lorelai leaned against the bed and sighed, as well. "Maybe I didn't give Jess enough credit and Dean _too_ much."

Rory looked at her mom, surprised, "Does this mean that you'll be nicer to Jess, now?"

Lorelai took a look at her daughter's eager face and couldn't say no, "I'll try. No promises, but I'll do my best to see what you see in him. Okay?"

"Thanks."

"No problem," Lorelai responded sincerely. They smiled at each other and all was okay. For now, anyway.

-

-

-

Luke looked up from wiping the counters when he heard the bell above the door chime. Seeing it was Rory, he waved the rag in the general direction of the stairs and told her to go one up. She flashed him a quick smile before bouncing up the stairs. As he was about to knock, the door swung open, revealing a surprised Jess.

"Well, hello," she said, backing up towards the wall so he could get past.

He gave her a half-smile and pecked her gently on the mouth. "Ready to go?"

"Yup. Just coming to get you."

He nodded and she followed, taking his hand. Rory waved a small goodbye to Luke and trialed behind Jess out the door.

She ran into him as she stepped outside. "Why'd you stop?" she asked.

He merely pointed to the carnival outside. "You've got to be kidding me? There's a bottle toss. And a snow cone machine. And oh, no- it's just a fortune teller."

She frowned, "I think it's cute."

"It's like I'm Dorothy and that…place out there is Oz. I think I even see the tin man out there," he complained sarcastically.

She squinted her eyes to get a better look, "No, that's just Kirk. The psychic must have told him that aliens are gonna invade Stars Hollow again."

"Of course."

"Look, you said you'd come to this thing. If you don't wanna be here, leave," she defended.

Jess sighed, "No. I may not want to be at this festival, thing, but you do, so I'm going to try to be…semi-pleasant."

She shot him a hopeful look, "Promise?"

He kissed her softly on the mouth. "I'll even pinky swear."

"Nah, I believe you." She stretched up to let her lips meet his again. He smirked before closing the gap between their faces and responded to her kiss. Just as it was starting to get a little deeper, they heard loud stomping footsteps. Breaking apart, they looked towards the direction of the noise.

The source of their interruption was none other than a little blonde girl with the name of Clara.

Rory gave him an apologetic smile and turned towards Dean's sister. "Hey."

"Hi, Rory!" She looked at Jess questioningly, "Who's he?"

Rory stepped in, "That's Jess." She faced Jess, "This is Clara, Dean's-"

She was disrupted by said brother. "Sorry, she got away from me."

"Buy a stronger leash," Jess smirked.

Dean rolled his eyes and ignored Jess. He turned to Rory. "Hey."

She glanced worriedly between Jess and Dean. "Hi," she said awkwardly.

Dean tried to strike up a conversation, "Uh, did you see they got the crazy psychic from Woodbury again?"

"Yeah, Jess and I were just talking about her." She noticed that Jess looked like he was growing annoyed, so she decided to end their little attempt at casualness.

"Hey, Dean?"

He gave her a expectant look. "Yeah?"

"Jess and I were just heading to the fair, so we really should get going. Maybe I'll see you sometime." She bent down to Clara's level, "Bye, Clara." As she rose back up, she nodded to Dean, "Bye, Dean."

He frowned, "Bye Rory."

Clara tilted her head to the side, "See ya, Rory. Bye, Jess," she said brightly.

Jess nodded tightly at her.

She scrunched up her nose, "Can he talk?"

Rory stifled a laugh, "Yeah. See you guys."

"But he's much better at doing other things with his mouth," he mumbled suggestively as he and Rory walked away from the Forrester duo.

She slapped him playfully on the arm, "Jerk!"

"That's what they all say."

"Well, you're my jerk, and I wouldn't have you any other way."

He smiled at her before brushing her lips with his own. He pulled back before anything started ands she pouted teasingly. "I take what I said back."

He rolled his eyes and followed her retreating back towards the festival. He grabbed her arm and she had to fight back a grin. "Sorry," he said ruefully.

"Maybe I'll forgive you." She looked down towards the ground, but her eyes lit up when she saw the cotton candy, "Oooh, let's go get some!" she cried, all past annoyances forgotten and ignored.

He sighed bit went after her, trying to figure out why in the world he was with her. They were as different as two people could be. Black and white. Peanut butter and jelly. Sugar and cinnamon. But like all those things, they were always better together.

* * *

**A/N: Eeh, sorry for the wait. And that it's reallt short. Finals and AP Exams and make-up work and friends and drama and all that other high-school crap. Can't wait to get out. Anyway, please review and tell me what you like best, what you didn't lie. Any suggestions, ideas, tips...anything, basically. I love your feedback- I know I've said it a billion times, but it's what I look foward to every morning before I get up. Sad, huh? See, you wouldn't ant me to never get up...then I can't write and then this story will end here- and I have so many more plans for it. Many, many more. Gah, long author's note, but I had stuff to say...Thanks and REVIEW!**

**P.S...I don't own anything.**


	7. I Solemnly Skate

**Chapter 7- I Solemnly Skate **

Jess Mariano raised his eyebrows at his girlfriend.

She frowned. "What?"

Smirking, he shook his head. "Nothing."

Rory set down the book she was reading. "C'mon…" she pouted.

"You're reading Lolita," he pointed out, placing his own book on the table in front of him. They were sitting in a booth at the diner after closing. Luke was already upstairs asleep, so they had the diner to themselves, pretty much.

She blushed. "So?"

"Doesn't seem like your thing," he shrugged. He popped a fry from the plate in front of him in his mouth and leaned deeper into the booth.

"Oh? And why is that, Jess?" she asked, voice laced with a tinge of defensiveness.

"The book is about a middle aged man and his sexual fantasies towards a twelve year old girl. Just doesn't scream 'Rory Gilmore' to me."

She frowned, "It's a classic. Have you ever read it?"

He nodded. "Yeah, a few years ago."

"And…" She trailed off expectantly.

"And what? It was good. Not my favorite, but worth the read." He cocked his head to the side. "You?"

She bit her lip in thought. "It's pretty good so far. Not really what I was expecting, but like you said, a pretty good book."

He nodded, finishing off the last of the fries. He noticed her plate was empty as well, so he grabbed both his and hers, and started walking to the back. He dropped the dishes into the sink, and headed back to Rory.

He scratched the back of his neck. "So…tomorrow night?"

She gave him an apologetic smile. "Mom and I are having a movie night, sorry." She blinked. "Hey! Why don't you come?"

Jess raised his eyebrows, skeptically. "Me and your mom?"

Rory nodded, smiling. "Yeah! It'll be great…maybe you and Mom can finally learn to get along."

He shot her a look. "Well, maybe not so much get along, but be able to tolerate each other?" she considered hopefully.

Sighing, he reluctantly nodded. "If you're sure…"

She grinned. "Definitely." She looked at her watch. "Hey…it's getting late, so I'd probably better go."

He nodded. "Wouldn't want Lorelai to worry."

"Course not."

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, engulfing her in a hug. "Tomorrow?"

She kissed his neck softly, it being the only place she could reach. "Yeah, sounds good."

Pulling back, she gave him a gentle peck before untangling herself from him and grabbing her bag.

"G' night," she called out with a small wave as she was walking out the door.

He returned the gesture and watched her walk home. After a few moments, he locked up the diner, turned off the lights, and shuffled up the stairs for a good night's rest. He knew tomorrow was going to be a long day.

-

-

-

_Ding, Dong _

"You're closer."

"He's your boyfriend."

"I'm making the coffee," Rory countered with a smirk.

Lorelai sighed. "Fine, you win. I'll get the door." She grumbled as she pulled herself off the couch. Pulling open the door, she plastered on a fake-but-tries-to-look-genuine-smile. "Jess," she greeted.

He nodded. "Lorelai."

She moved away from the door. "Coming in?"

"Yeah, thanks."

She rolled her eyes, staring at the back of his head, mocking him, as she followed him into the living room. Rory walked in form the kitchen at the same time. "Jess!"

She glared at her mom. He gave her a half-smile. "Hey."

She kissed him gently before turning to her Mom. "Do you want me to go finish getting all the food and junk ready really quick."

Lorelai smiled. "That'd be great. I'll start the movie."

Jess stood somewhat awkwardly next to Rory. When Rory noticed, she frowned. "Hmmm…Jess…help mom pick a movie? We don't wanna watch something too awful, right?"

"Okay, I guess."

Lorelai shrugged. "Fine by me."

Rory nodded before walking back into the kitchen. Lorelai set the video she was holding on the floor and turned to Jess. "We haven't had a chance to talk."

He raised his eyebrows and settled into the couch. "Okay."

"Look. I know your type…the bad-boy, too-cool, rebel thing you've got going? Smoking drinking, taking back, sleeping around…and the list continues. I've lived enough to know that you can hurt my daughter…and you aren't going to. Understand?"

He smirked humorlessly. "Ya know…I could say the same about you."

She tilted her head warily. "What do you mean?"

"That I know your type. The kind that gets pregnant as a teenager. The kind who run away from home. The kind who can't…"

Lorelai cut him off, angry and raised herself off the floor. "Hey! Hold it. That's not fair."

Jess stood up as well, eyes flashing dangerously. "Oh? And why is that?"

She spluttered. "Because you can't just presume that about me. You don't know me and…"

She trailed off, realization suddenly hitting her. "Oh."

He shook his head. "I'm not dealing with this. Tell Rory…something came up or whatever." He turned to leave.

"No, wait!" She grabbed his arm. "I'm…I'm sorry. I didn't realize…just…I'm sorry." She looked down at the ground.

He sighed and pulled his arm away from Lorelai's. "Understand that I'm not trying to hurt her. I just…want to be with her. I know I'm not good enough for her, but she's too _nice_. Too nice to see it."

"I know. That girl is sweeter than Splenda." She chuckled lightly at her lame joke. "Don't leave. Rory'd get upset at you and me…we can tolerate each other for a few hours, right?" Lorelai proposed, somewhat hopefully.

There was a long pause, each almost staring the other down. "I'm sor-"

Just then, Rory walked in, arms loaded down with food. "Hey guys…wanna help?"

Jess turned his eyes away from Lorelai. "Okay." He grabbed a few bags and boxes, walking over towards the coffee table.

Lorelai did the same a few seconds later.

"Talk about anything interesting while I was gone?" Rory eyed them suspiciously.

Lorelai and Jess shared a look. "Nope," they chorused.

Rory nodded. "Okay, then. What movie did you two decide on?"

"A classic, of course- _The Princess Bride_," Lorelai cut in, as if it was all planned out.

Jess shrugged as Rory smiled. "Oh, fun. Is it set up?"

"Almost," Lorelai said, struggling with the VCR player. "I just have to figure out how this goes in…no...oh." She gave them a sheepish smile. "It was backwards. The tape," she explained.

Rory chuckled. "That _would_ be a problem."

As Lorelai finished getting the movie working, Jess sunk into the sofa. Rory followed, leaning into his chest when she sat down. Lorelai decided on the floor in front of them. She pressed play.

-

-

-

As the closing credits rolled, Jess took a look at this watch. He nudged a sleeping Rory. "Hey."

She groggily opened her eyes. "Hmm?"

"It's kinda late and I should probably get going," he whispered.

She grabbed his wrist and saw the time. "Oh…right. It's almost midnight. Um…" She gently pulled herself up, careful not to wake her Mom sleeping next to the couch.

Jess followed her up. He looked around the room, noting the mess. "Is this going to be a problem to clean up?"

She shook her head. "No. It's actually not too bad this time. We'll do it tomorrow morning or whatever."

He nodded. "Okay. So…I guess I'm gonna get going, then."

"Okay," she said softly. She furrowed her brow. "Hey, do you want take a quick walk? I'm awake now, and since you're already late with Luke…"

He shrugged. "What about your…" He pointed to Lorelai.

"Oh…I'll just write a note. We'll be back soon. It's just all snowy and pretty outside." She gave him a small smile. "Are you up for it?"

There was a pause. "Sure."

She smiled and ran over to her room. She sat down at the desk, wrote a quick note letting Lorelai know where she was in case she woke up, and slipped on a pair of shoes and a jacket. She turned to Jess, who was leaning against the doorway of her room. "Ready?"

"Yup." She smiled and wrapped an arm around his waist. He did the same.

As they walked out to the hallway, she set the note beside Lorelai, next to the couch. "And we're off," she said, opening the front door.

He held it open as she stepped outside, and closed it behind him after he was on the porch. He shivered. "It's cold."

She gave him an amused grin. "It's snowing."

Jess rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I'll just have to make sure to keep warm by…" He nuzzled her neck. At her giggle, he lifted his head and smirked. "Don't like that?"

"It tickles." She brought her hand up to his cheek. "You need to shave."

He nodded. "Probably."

They were walking in the direction of the bridge. When they arrived, the noticed that there weren't too many lights and that the lake was frozen over.

Rory smiled. "I wanna skate," she proclaimed, ducking out from under his shoulder. She held out her mitten-clad hand. "Come with me?"

He smirked. "How?"

"We'll just glide around the ice with out shoes…come on. It'll be fun." She motioned towards the make-shift rink.

Jess sighed. "Alright, I guess. For a minute."

She smiled giddily and grabbed his hand. "Let's go!"

"As you wish," he returned, giving her a smirk.

She rolled her eyes. "C'mon, Westley."

They both timidly walked over to the side of the lake and put their feet warily on the ice. They took a few steps out and got more comfortable. "It seems strong enough."

He nodded. "Yeah. Still be careful, though."

For a few minutes, they slid around the frozen lake, laughing and just acting like kids. Rory tried to do a fancy twirl and slipped.

She groaned, trying to get herself up. Jess just smirked, standing above her.

"Don't say it," she warned, falling back onto the ice for a third time.

He finally offered his hand. "Say what?"

"Never mind," she muttered, grabbing his arm. Instead of using it to pull herself up, she yanked him down with her. He landed with a clunk.

He turned to her from his position on the ice. "Thanks for that."

"No problem." She smiled.

Jess maneuvered himself so that he was half on top of Rory, face inches from hers. He raised his eyebrows.

"What're you doing?" she asked somewhat breathlessly.

He didn't respond, but lowered his lips to hers. She almost giggled at the contrast between the warmth of his mouth and the coolness of his face, but bit it back as his mouth did wonderful things to her own.

They continued like this for a few minutes, until, "Hey, you there. What's going on!" They broke apart as a flashlight moved over them.

Rory squinted at the sudden light. Turning to the source, she thought it was…

" Taylor?"

Jess rolled his eyes and sat up.

Taylor frowned. "Rory Gilmore? What are you doing out this late? And on the lake, for that matter? Who's with you?"

The beam of light almost blinded Jess.

Taylor's frown deepened. "Oh, it's you. The hoodlum. I'd expect something like this from you, but Rory…never." He sounded almost scandalized.

She used Jess' shoulder to push herself into a standing position. Sighing, she addressed the shocked man. " Taylor, we're just gonna go. We weren't doing anything wrong, and you were right earlier when you said it was getting late."

"Oh, hold it right there, young lady." Taylor put his hand out to stop her. "According to the Stars Hollow law, it's illegal for a minor to be out in the water after midnight. And right now, it's twelve o' eight on the dot. You and that boy of yours have broken the law."

Jess stood up with a little help from Rory. "It's eight minutes. And we weren't_ in_ the water. We were _on_ the water. Technically, we didn't do anything wrong."

Taylor seemed flustered. "But you were…eight minutes…in…on, what's the difference?" he finally spluttered, face turning red.

"You can't do anything to us unless that little law book of yours says that minors aren't allowed to walk on water after midnight. Does it?"

"Young man, I don't appreciate this attitude. I'm letting you off with a warning, but hear this. At the next town meeting, this law will be changed. You'd better not be gallivanting at night again," Taylor huffed. He shot them on last glare before marching off towards the center of town, muttering about "stupid loopholes" and "technicalities" all the while.

Rory turned to Jess before bursting out laughing. "That was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. I can't wait to tell Mom," she managed to get out between breaths.

Jess gave her a half smile. "You're the only person I know who'd want to tell her Mom about almost being arrested after sneaking out late at night."

Rory shrugged, still giggling. "Maybe…but you wouldn't had this much fun with anyone else, huh?"

He didn't say anything to that, but slung an arm around her shoulders. "Ready to head back home, then?" he offered.

They were walking in the direction of the Gilmore House. "I guess. Tonight's been fun, though."

"Yeah. Seeing Taylor turn thirteen shades of red is never dull."

-

-

-

As Rory and Lorelai were walking to Luke's the next morning, they noticed Taylor relentlessly shooting glares in their direction.

Lorelai looked confused, while Rory looked guilty. "I wonder why Taylor keeps looking at us like that?"

Rory sighed, defeated. "Uh, it's me he's upset at, not you."

The elder Gilmore raised her eyebrows. "Um…why?"

"Last night, after you fell asleep, Jess and I took a walk around town. It was kinda late and…"

Lorelai crinkled her brow, a little worried. "Oh, I left a note in case you woke up and started worrying. It was just for a little while…no big deal."

The tension in Lorelai's face eased a bit. Rory continued. "Anyway, we headed over to the bridge, and I noticed that the lake was frozen over, so I managed to drag Jess into skating. We just messed around for a while, until I fell. He started laughing, and when he put his hand out, I pulled him down with me. We kinda started kissing, and that's when Taylor caught us."

Lorelai fought back a laugh. "And…"

"So, he started going on about some stupid law that we broke, but Jess found this loophole, so we got away unscathed," Rory finished, arriving at the diner. She held the door open for her mom.

Lorelai walked into Luke's. "That would explain the glares."

"Definitely."

They headed towards an empty table. As they sat down, Jess came over with a pot of coffee, and gave Rory a short kiss. "Hey," he greeted.

She smiled. "Hey, back. I was just telling my mom about last night."

He smirked and turned to Lorelai. "Next town meeting's gonna be interesting, huh?"

Lorelai downed the last of her coffee and laughed. "Hell, yeah. More coffee, please?"

He poured her what was left of the pot. "I gotta got refill this and get back to work." He turned to Rory. "Hang out later?"

She grinned. "Sure. When's your shift over?"

"Two. That's about four hours."

"Okay," she said. "I think I'll catch up with Lane for a little while, then."

He nodded. "Okay. I'm gonna get going." He gave Rory another kiss. "Rory. Lorelai."

"Bye," they chorused, already laughing at something else going on outside. Jess rolled his eyes, but went to the counter to ring up a customer. "Never a dull moment with those two," he muttered. "Never a dull moment."

* * *

**A/N: So...I am practically done with the next chapter, so as soon as I reach, say...100 reviews, I'll update. Sound reasonable? Only one more review than last time...and this chapter's a bit longer. Hmm?**

**So, I need your help with something: Jess' sexual history. (Ha, ha, get your giggles out of the way now). I want to know two things. A) How many girls he's been with and B) How old was he when he lost his virginity. Whatever comes up as the most common opinion...I'll probably use, or at least take into consideration. Does that work okay for y'all?**

**I think that's it...so, REVIEW PLEASE! (P.S...I don't own it...I'm not sure if The WB or The CW or ASP or the new writer does, so...it's not me. That I'm sure of.)**


	8. Teenagers Out of Water

**Chapter 8-Teenagers Out of Water **

Lorelai Gilmore sighed as she walked pass the gazebo on her way to Luke's. They were at it again, and by _they_, she meant Rory and Jess. From her current position, she could see Jess on top of her daughter, making his way down her neck, both lying on one of the benches.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Hey, Jess! Get off the daughter!"

He lifted himself up off Rory; frown fixed on his face and turned to Lorelai. Rory pouted, as well, but suddenly got a twinkle in her eyes. He raised an eyebrow.

She grinned, pushing him down so that she was now on top and returned his amused smirk. He pulled her down for a kiss, and they continued what they were doing before they were interrupted.

Lorelai sighed and through her hands up in defeat. She gave the couple one last look before deciding to go on to Luke's, all the while grumbling about "hormones" and "defiling."

As she opened the door to the diner, she put her hand dramatically to her forehead. "Luke! If I don't get a gigantic cup of really strong coffee right now, it won't be my fault if tomorrow you wake up and find yourself with one less sarcastic, annoying, nephew." She sat down at the counter with an expectant smile.

Luke shot Lorelai a disgruntled look as he brought over the pot of coffee. "What did he do now?"

Lorelai brought the now full mug to her lips and gulped down about half the cup before answering. "He's brainwashing my daughter into being all gross in the middle of the town."

"Oh, and how is he doing this?"

"With his satanic powers. He's the devil incarnate. The Anti-Christ. The-"

Luke cut her off. "Of course. Let's say Jess is somehow the most evil person on earth. Isn't Rory the least evil, making them cancel each other out?"

Lorelai seemed to contemplate this for a moment. "I guess," she said slowly. "But it's still yucky to see them playing tonsil hockey right there where everyone can see."

"I didn't disagree. But at least we know what they're doing and where they are. If we didn't, we might have to be a little more worried."

"It's Rory."

"It's Jess," Luke pointed out.

Lorelai finished off the last of her coffee before nodding to Luke. "You've definitely got a point. Maybe it's time Rory and I have a little talk…"

She trailed off, raising her eyes suggestively at Luke. He groaned, but otherwise said nothing.

"See ya tomorrow, Luke."

"Bye, Lorelai." He gave her a small smile as she headed out the door and past the gazebo. He watched her walk past Rory and Jess, before seemingly deciding on something and turning around. She walked up the steps to the benches on which they were lying and grabbed Rory, practically dragging her down the street to their house. Luke couldn't make out what anyone was saying, but noticed the annoyed expression on both Rory and Jess' faces and the satisfied and triumphant beam on Lorelai's. He chuckled quietly to himself, amused at her antics. 'Poor Rory,' he thought as she shot Jess an apologetic frown. _'Poor Jess.'_

-

-

-

"What was that for?"

Lorelai looked at her daughter, "We need to talk."

Rory frowned. "About what?"

"I'll give you a hint. It has something to do with the fact that you were virtually mauling Jess in the middle of town."

"So?" Rory folded her arms across her chesty, frustrated.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Sex," she said bluntly.

Rory faltered. "What?"

"S…E…X. Sex." Lorelai spelled it out.

"I heard what you said, but I still don't see what me kissing Jess has to do with…_it_."

Lorelai opened the door to the house and let Rory go inside. They both sat down on the sofa, and Lorelai turned to face Rory. "Kissing leads to sex, and by the way you were kissing; horizontally, roaming hands, slobbery mouths…need I go on?" At Rory's head shake she continued, "It looks like sex is in you guy's imminent future, as much as I hate to say it."

Rory sighed. "We haven't talked about it."

Lorelai cocked an eyebrow. "Well, I doubt Jess is going to want to start _that _particular conversation."

Rory shrugged and leaned back into the sofa cushions, not saying anything.

"Look, are you thinking about sex…with Jess?" Lorelai held back a grimace as she finished the question.

Rory bit her lip and again, shrugged.

"Rory."

"Mom," Rory mocked.

Lorelai sighed, frustrated. "Look, Rory. I'm serious here. Are you with me?"

Rory let her eyes rest on a dirt spot on the couch. "Sorry," she mumbled.

"So…" Lorelai prodded.

"I haven't really thought about it," Rory answered truthfully.

Lorelai exhaled, relieved. As she was about to say something, Rory continued.

"But, since you brought it up, I guess you're right. It could happen." A beat. "Soon, maybe."

Lorelai cringed, "How soon?"

Rory again, shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think I'm ready yet."

"I think you should wait. And I'm being a friend-slash-mom here. Unless you're one hundred percent, absolutely, no-doubt-about-it positive, you aren't ready to take that step," her mom said.

"Yeah."

Lorelai continued, "It's a really big deal. And there are risks and consequences and-"

Rory cut her off, "I know, Mom. I'm one of those consequences, aren't I?"

"No, Rory. I just mean that you have to be careful. Plastic bubble boy careful."

"I'm not even having sex yet."

"Key word, there: yet," Lorelai reminded.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Sure. When, and _if_ I do have sex I'll be super careful. I swear."

Lorelai frowned as she looked down. "Will you also tell me?"

"What?" Rory asked, confused.

"Before. I want to know before anything happens, okay?"

Rory nodded. "Okay."

"Okay," Lorelai repeated. "Okay."

-

-

-

Jess was scowling as he walked into the diner, door slamming behind him. He was having a perfectly good time with his girlfriend when her mother had to come and interrupt. It's not like they were doing anything bad, he thought. Just kissing. But Lorelai saw something else, and now he had to go back to work and bus tables instead of the less boring things he was doing before.

Luke threw a washcloth at him, and gestured to the dirty tables in the far corner. Jess sighed, but complied and started scrubbing the stained surface.

Luke watched him work with a frown on his face, thinking about the previous conversation he just had with Lorelai. He decided that maybe he and Jess could do with a little chat, too.

A few hours later, as they guys were closing up, Luke approached Jess fairly cautiously. "Jess…"

"Yeah." He didn't turn around, but kept refilling the ketchup bottle.

Luke fidgeted with the salt shaker in his hands. "Can we, maybe talk?"

Jess raised his eyebrows, back still facing Luke. "About?"

"Sex," he answered awkwardly.

Jess smirked. "Shouldn't you have already had this conversation, Uncle Luke? I don't think I'm the right person for you to be talking to this about. You'd probably be more comfortable with a father figure."

Luke swatted him across the back of his head. "C'mon, Jess." At the somber tone in his voice, Jess turned around.

"Are you serious?"

"Unfortunately," Luke grumbled. He raised his eyes off the ground. "See, I was talking to Lorelai today, and…"

Jess scowled. "So Lorelai wants you to talk to me about sex?"

Luke shook his head. "No."

"So, then?"

Luke sighed. "Look, I know you've had sex before, and I know you know that Rory hasn't. Don't do anything to you know, hurt her. Don't force her, or…"

Jess interrupted him. "Luke, I care about her. Yes, I've had sex, but that's all it was...sex." He continued after a moment, "Rory's…different."

Luke's expression softened. "I know. Just, be careful, okay? She's got a lot going for her." He paused. "You do too, you know. Just…be careful."

Jess nodded. "Okay."

"Okay." Luke repeated. "Okay."

-

-

-

A few days later, Rory and Jess were planning on hanging out in the apartment. They headed up the stairs, and Jess held open the door so she could go on in.

He shut the door after she stepped inside, and threw his jacket on a chair, walking over to the fridge. Bending down, he asked, "Soda?"

"Sure." She casually draped her jacket over his and wondered over to a stack of new books by his bed. He handed her the coke and sat down on the edge, taking a sip of his own drink.

She picked up the book on top, "Have you read this yet?"

He shook his head. "Not yet. I heard it was good, though"

Nodding, Rory set the book back down and turned to look at him. "Yeah. Me, too."

He shrugged and finished off the soda. "What do you want to do?"

"What about that homework you promised me?" she asked playfully, grinning.

"I think I have something that would help over there," he said, pointing to the couch.

"Uh-hmm," she agreed. "Let's go look."

She stood up and made her way to the sofa, while he trailed behind her, throwing the can in the trash on the way. Right before reaching the end of the couch, she stopped and turned around. "Hmm…I don't see any textbooks."

He gave her a mock frown, "Huh. Me neither. I guess we'll just have to make do with what we got."

Smiling, Rory nodded. "Guess so."

He pulled her towards him, his hands resting on the small of her back, their bodies molded together comfortably.

Her face inches form his, she grinned, "Hi."

"Hi." With that, he slowly pulled her in for a heated kiss, starting off pretty passionate and progressing even more as the time went on.

She felt the back of her legs come in contact with the sofa, and fell back onto it, giggling when he fell on top of her. "Oomph," he grunted.

She brushed it off, and continued where they left off. He put is weight on his elbows; leaning over her while she ran her hands over his back and through his hair. He let himself relax a little more, and tangled her legs with his. His hands started wandering towards the hem of her shirt, and when he began lifting it, she pulled away, coming to her senses.

"Wait," she breathed, eyes wide and dark blue.

He raised himself up, leaning against the back of the couch, "Sorry."

She shook her head, "No, it's fine. But," she bit her lip. "I realized something. When I'm with you, kissing you, touching you, I lose almost all control. It's a scary feeling. It's like I'm a different person, one that normal Rory wouldn't trust with you."

He frowned. "What does that mean?"

"I guess it means that…" She wrinkled her brow, "…it means that I'm afraid that I'm going to do something I'm not ready for because I'm too caught up in the moment to stop it," she confessed, quietly.

"I'm not pressuring you to do anything, Rory. Tell me to stop, I'll stop," he told her.

"See, that's what I'm worried about. I don't know if I can tell you to stop."

"I'm still a little confused. What now? No more kissing?"

She rolled her eyes, "No. Definitely some kissing. Lots. I like it." She smiled, "But this is all new for me, you know? The physical thing."

"How far exactly…" Jess paused, trying to figure what he was going to say. "You and Dean- how far did you guys actually go?"

Rory blushed. "Probably not much more that a little making out," she admitted.

He raised his eyebrows disbelievingly, "You're kidding me. You went out with this guy for two years? Was it him or you?"

"That stopped things from progressing further? I guess both of us. He never tried anything, but even if he had, I don't know if I would have let him do anything."

Rory shrugged, staring at a loose thread on her jeans.

"Huh."

She looked up and saw him smirking. Pursing her lips, she shot him a playful glare. "Shut up."

He lifted his arms innocently, palms up. "I didn't say anything."

Her face suddenly grew serious. "Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"How many girls have you been with?"

He sighed before letting himself fall back onto the cushions. He blew out a breath, and looked Rory in the eye.

"We're gonna have this conversation now, then, huh?"

When she didn't say anything, he shook his head. "Four, I think. Possibly a few drunked one-night stands."

She nodded, "How old were you?"

"Fourteen," he answered, a bit of regret laced through his voice.

"Oh."

After a few moments of silence, he turned to look at Rory. He noticed she was crying, so he gently took her face in his hands and wiped away the tears with his thumbs. "Hey...what's wrong?"

"Why do you want to be with me? You could have any other girl; someone more experienced, someone who doesn't stop you when you're kissing. Why me?"

He sighed and put his hand on her chin, gently lifting her face so that she could meet his eyes. "You're different than all those girls. I barely remember their names, let alone cared about them. You are special, Rory."

She frowned. "Short bus special or…"

Rolling his eyes, he answered, "I really care about you Rory. I…" He nervously ran a hand through his hair. "…I think…I think I might love you."

Her eyes widened and he ducked his head, embarrassed.

She blinked away her tears and turned to face him.

"I know it's stupid, and you probably don't feel the same way, but I just wanted to tell you. I'm not used to this whole," he motioned between the two of them, "emotion thing."

"I guess we're in the same boat then, huh? Both totally confused at what's going on. Neither of us in our comfort zones? Like fish outta water?"

He smirked, "Apparently." Pausing, he raised his gaze to her tearstained face, "Now what?"

"I don't know," she admitted quietly. After a beat, "Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I love you, too," she told him, smiling softly.

She saw the corners of his mouth upturn into a small grin, and her smile matched his. Everything was going to be all right.

* * *

**A/N: I got 29 reviews. For one chapter. One! Amazing. You don't realize how ecstatic that made me. Majorly happy. Pshh...crazy! Any possible way I could get that much again? Maybe? See how fast I got this chapter out? I've started working on the next one...so maybe it won't be a month between updates. Sorry about that. Really sorry. :(**

**I actually had this chapter done and written before the previous one, so sorry if there are any descrepencies...but there shouldn't be.**

**I don't own it. PLEASE REVIEW. Thanks. :D**

**Eh, One more thing...**

_**- Lexy-Lovin-Milo:**_ You didn't leave an email or a way to get back to you... and I like to respond to some of the longer reviews. So, I just want to thank you for the review, and tell you that No, I don't get tired of your rambling; the longer the review the better! Thanks!


	9. Dining Emily and Richard

Quick A/N: Thanks to Maya for beta-ing and helping when I got stuck. So...if there are any mistakes...blame her. :D

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**Chapter 9- Dining Emily and Richard**

Friday night dinner at the Gilmore household was going as usual; a bit of fighting, a generous amount of reprimanding, and a bucket-load of headaches. That was, until Emily Gilmore spoke up.

"Those kinds of things are always obvious. You know, when a couple is in a relationship and then suddenly isn't."

Lorelai set her fork down, ready for whatever was coming.

"Yeah, I guess," Rory said warily.

Emily gave Rory a pointed look. Rory turned to her Mom. "Is she still looking?" she whispered.

Lorelai sighed. "Yup."

"Right. Um, you know, Grandma, did I mention that unfortunately I'm not with Dean anymore?"

Emily set her silverware down as well. "No, you didn't."

"Well, I'm not," Rory confirmed.

Richard spoke up. "Well I think that this is good news. He wasn't right for you…and it's good to be single while you're so young."

Lorelai shot her dad a glare.

Emily interrupted. "Well, yes, I've known for weeks actually."

"Oh? How?"

"Well, you very abruptly stopped mentioning him twelve dinners ago, so I figured that was the case," explained Emily.

Rory swallowed the piece of potato that she had just put in her mouth. "Well, I'm sorry I didn't tell you Grandma, Grandpa."

"Well, I think you should have. I mean, what if I had invited Dean to an event and you were no longer with him, and that's how I found out? It would've been embarrassing."

Lorelai snickered. "What sort of event would you have invited Dean to?"

"I don't know…a wedding?" Emily pursed her lips.

"For who?" Lorelai shot her a skeptical look.

Emily rolled her eyes. "A mutual friend or something."

"You and Dean have mutual friends in common that Rory and I don't? Who would that be, the Talbotts or that senior partner at Deloite and Touche?"

"You know what I meant. It's always best to tell each other major life events so that there's no awkwardness," Emily returned, taking a bite of her roast.

Rory coughed. "Well, then…I probably also failed to mention that I'm seeing someone else."

Richard perked up. "Really? Who?"

"Jess."

His eyebrows furrowed.

"Jess. Luke's nephew. From the diner?" Lorelai offered.

Richard frowned and turned his attention on Lorelai. "The one that broke her arm? You're letting Rory date him?"

Rory dropped her fork with a clank. "Hey. Don't blame Mom for this. I want to date him and he's a good guy. You'd like him."

"Well, then. Let's meet him," her grandmother suggested.

Rory faltered. "Umm, what?"

Emily smiled. "Bring him to dinner next week. It sounds like you two are getting serious…I want to meet the guy who my granddaughter is so enthralled with."

"I guess," Rory stuttered, giving her mom a pleading look. "He might actually have to work, but I'll see what I can do."

Richard nodded, satisfied. "Good, good." He took a bite of his meat. "Emily, does this taste a bit dry to you?"

Emily frowned and tasted her own. "Actually, it does." Rory and Lorelai let out slight yelps when Emily suddenly shouted. "Maya?"

They heard the quick footsteps of the latest maid rushing into the dining room.

"Yes, Mrs. Gilmore?"

Lorelai turned to whisper in Rory's ear. "I give it five minutes before she's fired."

Rory bit her lip. "Ten. Grandma's in a good mood now…forcing Jess to come like that."

Lorelai grinned. "It was gonna happen-"

The shrill voice of Emily Gilmore cut her off. "I want you out by tomorrow, Maya. Can't you do anything right?"

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "I guess we were both off."

Rory nodded.

-

-

-

Lorelai threw her coat on the couch as she and Rory walked into their house later that night. "Now that was a pleasant dinner."

Rory frowned. "Oh, yeah." Beat. "I have to talk to Jess. Maybe we can find a way to get him out of it?" she suggested.

Lorelai snorted. "Sure. You get right on that."

"It's not gonna be too bad." She bit her lip and sat down next to Lorelai on the sofa. "Hey, Mom?"

"Hey, Rory." She smiled. "What's up?"

Taking a deep breath, Rory began. "I told him I loved him."

Lorelai froze. "You told…love…who?" she choked out.

"Jess."

"Just like that? 'I love you'?"

Rory half-smiled. "Well, no. He kinda said it first."

Lorelai's eyes widened. "Wow."

"Actually, we were having the talk…you know, about _it_…and he said, and I quote, 'I think I might love you'."

"You were talking about," she coughed. "Sex?"

Rory frowned. "Yeah. You said we probably should, right…and so I brought it up."

"And you love him?" Lorelai looked almost a little scared.

A grin took over Rory's face. "Yeah. I love Jess."

"Wow."

"Haven't we been through this already?" Rory asked.

Lorelai shook her head. "Yeah, sorry. Just…it's big. I mean, you couldn't say it to Dean, and now…Jess." She cocked her head. "How is it different?"

Rory tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "He's so…_he's_ different," she concluded. "Like…he's smart and funny, and nice and _everything_." She paused. "He's actually a lot like you if you really get to know him."

Lorelai snorted. "Like me?"

"Yeah…I mean the sense of humor, the sarcasm, likes good music, smart, independent, strong. And he doesn't let many people in." She explained this all a little excitedly, just realizing how much truth was in what she just said.

Lorelai wrinkled her nose. "Really?"

Nodding, Rory grinned. "Really. Maybe that's why I like him so much?"

Lorelai laughed. "I'll take that as a compliment, thank you."

"As you should." Rory chuckled. "I can't believe I never realized it before," she admitted, thoughtfully.

Lorelai patted her leg. "Hey, no biggie." She bit her lip. "So, let me get this straight. You were talking about sex…and it segued into love?"

"I guess…"

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "And…" she probed for more.

"What?" Rory asked, truly not seeing what she was getting at.

"Sex…how'd _that_ talk go?"

Rory shrugged. "Okay, I talked, he talked, I cried…that kind of thing." She tried to brush it off as nothing.

Lorelai frowned. "Why were you crying? Did he say something or-"

"No, not at all," Rory cut her off. "I just feel…inadequate, maybe? After he told me about his experience…I dunno…it was kind of silly when I think about it."

"His experience," Lorelai began hesitantly. "What exactly…"

Rory shook her head. "It's not anything big…he's had sex with a few girls…and he was pretty young, but…like I said before…it's not a big deal."

"Are you sure you're okay with it?" Lorelai placed her hand on Rory's arm comfortingly. "Jess and all the other girls?"

Rory nodded, giving her mom a small smile. "Actually, I am. It really doesn't bother me. I knew before we were dating that he wasn't a virgin…and that's not a big deal. Not many guys are…"

Lorelai grinned, trying to break the tension. "There _are _some benefits of dating an experienced guy, ya know."

At Rory's bemused look, she continued. "They now all the secrets of how to please…"

Rory giggled and hit Lorelai with a pillow. "Mom!"

Lorelai laughed. "C'mon, Rory…you know you can't deny it."

-

-

-

"Do you love it?" Rory smiled at Jess, who was scanning the back cover of a book.

"It's great."

Rory's voice rose in excitement. "_The Holy Barbarians._ I mean, what a title!" She grinned. "And it's by a Venice Beach beatnik about Venice Beach beatniks, and to top it off, the beatnik who wrote it is the father of the guy that does those Actor's Studio interviews on TV!"

Jess quirked an eyebrow. "The guy with the beard?"

Rory nodded. "Yeah, the pointy beard. That's his dad writing at his desk."

"Oh, it's weird that a weird beatnik-y guy would have a conservative son like that."

"Maybe he's not that conservative. Maybe at night, he, like, takes off his clothes and parties."

"Aw, man, now get that picture out of my head," Jess cringed.

Rory rolled her eyes. "It's a cool book, you've gotta admit."

"It is," he agreed. "Thanks."

Rory frowned. "Oh, I'm not lending it. I'm not done." She shook her head fervently.

He brought his eyes to hers. "Well, why'd you show it to me?"

"I like showing you the stuff I'm reading," Rory explained, as if it was obvious.

"But you knew I'd wanna read it. You're a book tease," he accused.

"You'll get it when I'm done," Rory promised. He reluctantly handed her the book.

Jess smirked. "Cruel woman."

She ignored him. "So, are you going to work now?"

Jess sighed. "Back to the salt mines."

"So, you're not tied to the hours you have, right? You can trade if you want to," Rory asked hesitantly.

"There's some flexibility," he told her. She could hear the question in his voice.

"You got any flexibility next Friday night?" She gave him her most charming smile.

"Yeah…why?"

Rory bit her lip. "I thought maybe you could come to dinner with us."

"Us?"

"To my Grandma's," Rory clarified.

Jess smirked. "To meet your grandmother," he concluded.

Rory nodded, offering him a placid smile. "Yeah, she'll be there, so yeah…it might be rude not to introduce the two of you."

Jess backtracked. "I can't, I gotta work."

"You just said you could get out," she pouted.

"I didn't know what for," he said, shaking his head.

Rory resorted to the begging-slash-whining tactic. "Jess…"

"No," he refused.

Rory frowned. "But I already kind of agreed."

He sighed. "Aw, man."

"So I'm kinda jammed here."

There was a small pause. "Does she know what I look like?" he asked.

"I don't think so."

"Perfect," he said. "Find someone who vaguely resembles me. Take him. Just don't kiss him goodnight."

"That's not going to work." She rolled her eyes.

"Andy Warhol did it all the time." Rory handed him the book. "We're just five bucks away from a deal."

Rory leaned in for a kiss. A few moments later, she tilted her head. "That's worth five at least."

"You Gilmores think a lot of yourselves." She gave him a hopeful smile. "Okay," he sighed.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Rory gushed.

He wrapped an arm around her waist. "Manipulator," he teased.

-

-

-

Rory dropped her backpack unceremoniously onto the floor beside the stool she just took a seat on at Luke's Diner. She was absolutely exhausted after a long day of school, but she was thanking all the gods she could think of, that it was Friday. She could finally relax, after a hopefully quick dinner at the Grandparents, and then spend a nice weekend with her mom and Jess…

She groaned and let her head fall to her hands at the counter. Jess. Dinner. Grandparents. Bad.

Just as she was about to continue her little rant, Luke walked over to her with a pot of coffee. He hadn't even need to ask before Rory nodded her head furiously, desperately pointing to the empty mug in his other hand.

When he was done pouring the hot liquid into her cup, she hastily grabbed it and downed half of the coffee within a few seconds.

Luke shot her a slightly concerned look as he was passing to the back of the counter. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Rory set down the mug and gave him a weary nod. With a small smile, she explained. "I just remembered about the dinner tonight. Jess and Mom and Emily and Richard Gilmore." She shook her head. "Not fun."

Luke raised an eyebrow. "Jess is going to Friday Night Dinner with you?"

Rory's face took on a puzzled expression. "Yeah…did he not tell you?"

He snorted. "Jess and I have the type of communication where everything is on a…need-to-know basis, I guess." He frowned. "And I guess this wasn't something he felt I needed to know."

"Hey, it's probably nothing. Maybe he forgot?" She offered hopefully.

He brushed it off, and his face lost the confused look it previously held. "Nah, it's not important. No biggie. Anything else you want to eat?" He changed the subject as subtly as he could.

She grinned. "Ah, nothing now. I'm a little bit too nervous to eat anything."

Luke nodded. "Okay. Don't hesitate to call me over if you want anything. You waiting for Lorelai?"

"Nope," Rory said, finishing the last of her coffee. "She has to work a little late. She's just heading straight to Hartford from there. I'm going with Jess."

"Okay…" He frowned. "And Lorelai's okay with it…with the accident and stuff?" He sounded a bit uncomfortable with this conversation, probably remembering the resulting blow-out her had with Lorelai because of it.

Rory shrugged. "She's…dealing with it. She like's him than she used to; or at least tolerates him." She shot him an amused smile. "Is he here, by the way? I wanna make sure he's gonna be ready…"

Luke cut her off. "Upstairs, I think. Go ahead."

Rory gave him a grateful look before scooting off the bench and over towards the curtain leading to the apartment. She reached the top and knocked, waiting a few seconds before Jess opened the door.

"You know, you could have just walked in." He greeted her with a small kiss before leading her to the couch. He picked up the book lying next to him and marked the page before sitting down with her.

She rolled her eyes. "It feels weird, I guess." She smiled when she caught the title of the novel. "Is that _The Holy Barbarians_?"

He smirked. "Yeah. I'm about halfway through."

Rory gave him what she hoped was an innocent smile. "Speaking of the book, you know what tonight is…"

Jess groaned. "Unfortunately. I still think you should go with the method I suggested earlier. Much cleaner."

"But what if they meet you again at some other social event, and see me with you and think I'm cheating on the real Jess, who'd actually be the fake one, with you, who'd really be the real one?"

His eyes widened. "Where the hell did that come from?"

She gasped. "Oh, God…I'm turning into my mom." She sat up, alarmed. "And my grandma!"

He cocked his head to the side, confusion evident on his face. "I see your Mom in there, but…your Grandma?

She shook her head thoughtfully. "Last week she was going on about how it was terrible of me to not tell her Dean and I broke up because they might see each other at a social event for a mutual friend."

"Dean and your grandma have mutual friends?"

"Exactly what I said," she exclaimed. "I mean, it makes no sense…but, hey…that's Emily Gilmore for you."

Jess just sighed. "Can't you tell how excited I am to meet them?"

"You look ecstatic," she deadpanned.

He let out a dry chuckle. "You so owe me for this."

She reached over the sofa and gave him a small kiss. "I promise I'll make it up to you."

Jess grinned as he pulled back. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." She brushed her lips against his one last time before jumping off the couch and heading towards the door. "Pick me up in an hour."

Rolling his eyes, he nodded. "One hour."

-

-

-

Rory threw everything she needed into her purse right as she heard the sound of a car honking in front of her house. Cursing under her breath, she slung the bag over her shoulder, grabbed the pair of heels by her door, and almost tripped to the front of the house. She sighed as she went outside, shutting the door behind her.

"Coming, coming!" she called, waving to Jess, who looked a bit uncomfortable in a pair of slacks and a collared shirt. He was standing outside the car, leaning against the side.

As Rory reached the car, she grinned. "You look nice."

He greeted her with a kiss. "You do, too. Ready to go?"

She nodded. "Yup." Throwing a smile over her shoulder, she went over to the passenger side, and scooted into the seat.

Jess watched her for a second before getting in himself, and turning the keys. As he pulled out of the driveway, he turned his head towards Rory. "Lorelai's meeting us there?"

"Yeah," she confirmed. "She had to work a little longer at the inn."

He nodded. They drove in a comfortable silence for awhile before Rory bit her lip, and rested her hand on his thigh.

He raised an eyebrow. "What's up?"

She offered him a small smile. "I just want to warn you…my grandparents can be kinda scary."

He laughed. "They can't be that bad."

"Oh, they're that bad." She sighed. "Don't say anything to offend them, or their lifestyle. Don't mention anything about you smoking or drinking…just-"

He cut her off with a smirk. "Just don't be me?"

"No, no, no." She hastened to fix what she said. "I just mean…be boring, I guess?"

Jess rolled his eyes. Rory cocked her head to the side, thoughtfully. "Mention reading to my grandpa, maybe…and with my grandma…she's harder, I think."

They were almost to the Gilmore's house. He pulled off the interstate and onto a smaller road. "It'll be fine, Rory. How bad can it be?"

"_How bad can it be_?" she muttered, shaking her head. "You ain't seen nothin' yet."

-

-

-

"Ring the bell."

Jess raised an eyebrow at Rory as if to say, '_Me_?'

Rory nodded. "Yup." She pouted when he refused. "Please?"

He rolled his eyes. "Let's wait for your mom. That way your grandma might not realize that you drove her in a car with the guy the broke your arm."

"Fractured," she reminded. "And maybe that's a good idea." Her voice was sheepish.

He grabbed her hand and led her over to the steps in front of the door. Rory leaned into him as they sat down.

"How long 'til she gets here?" he asked.

They heard a car pull up into the driveway. Rory grinned. "Great timing."

Jess shook his head and stood up, pulling Rory into a standing position next to him. They waited as Lorelai shut off the jeep and got out of the car. She waved towards them, slinging her purse over her shoulder as she walked up to the front door.

"Hey," she greeted. "Whatcha' waiting for?"

Rory motioned to Jess, grinning. "You. He was afraid."

Jess protested. "Was not."

"Was too."

He glared. "Was not."

"Was too," Rory giggled.

"Was n-"

Lorelai cut him off. "As much as I'd like you to continue this weird argument-like thing…we have to go in. We're gonna be late."

Rory smiled, wrapping an arm around Jess' waist and leaning up for a kiss. "Sorry," she said.

Jess rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah."

Lorelai sighed and pressed the doorbell. "I suggest you separate before Emily comes and sees you."

The reluctantly stepped away from each other right as the door opened. Rory gave her grandmother a grin. "Grandma…good to see you."

Lorelai nodded, smiling tightly. "Mom."

Emily grinned. "Rory, Lorelai…Jess, is it?" He nodded his head. "Come in, come in."

She called for the maid. "Maya! Get their coats please!" Rory and Lorelai exchanged amused looks as they heard Maya's feet rushing from the kitchen."

"Yes ma'am, Mrs. Gilmore." She bowed lightly before taking everyone's jacket and walking them over to the closet.

Emily clapped her hands. "Well, then. Drinks?" She led them into the living room, where Richard was reading the paper.

Lorelai sat down on a chair, giving Rory a look that said, 'Going better than I expected.'

Rory nodded, and sat next to Jess on the long couch. She leaned into his side, getting comfortable.

Emily's overly cheerful voice broke through the silence. "Lorelai, what would you like to drink? Rory, Jess, Richard?"

"I'll have a martini," Lorelai said.

Richard set down his paper and looked up at his wife. "That sounds like a good idea. Martini for me, as well."

Emily nodded and turned to the teenagers. Rory smiled and motioned towards Jess. "We'll both have water."

She turned back around and made the drinks. On her way to handing Richard his drink, she shot Lorelai a glare.

Lorelai rolled her eyes and gave Rory a significant look. 'Well there goes that…' she thought.

She took a sip of her martini as Rory and Jess were handed their waters. Emily sat down next to her husband, setting down her own drink on the coffee table in front of her.

"So, Jess," she started. "Lorelai tells me you work at the diner. Does it feel less important that you only work there because your uncle owns the place?"

Rory made a move to protest, but Jess beat her to it. "Nope. Feels just fine."

Emily nodded tightly, returning to her drink.

Richard frowned, setting down his glasses. "Jess…what are your interests?"

Taking a deep breath, he leaned forward. He told Rory he'd make an effort… "I like reading a lot…sometimes I write. Music is always good, too."

"What kind of books do you like?" Richard asked, his expression curious.

"I'm a big fan of Hemingway…Tolstoy, any of the classic writers. I do like modern books as well, though."

Richard smiled. "I actually have a first edition _Old Man and the Sea_ in my study…maybe I could show it to you sometime?" he offered. He liked this boy, so far, from what he saw. Definitely smarter than the last one.

Jess nodded, giving him a half smile. "That'd be great."

Emily frowned, not liking the fact that Richard was getting along with this…hoodlum. She decided to intervene. She gave Jess a fake smile. "Jess…do you drink?"

He snapped his head up at the seemingly random question. He was internally debating whether he would answer at all…and if so…what to say. He took one look at a nervous Rory and chose. "I have." Honesty. He just hoped it was the right choice.

Richard lifted his head as Lorelai shut her eyes, knowing what was coming. She leaned back in her chair and said nothing. Rory was nervously fidgeting with her fork; her eyes darting from her grandma to Jess to her grandpa and back again.

Emily continued. "That's good. Do you smoke, too?"

Jess smirked…it was _on_. "I did."

He heard someone inhaling deeply from across the table, but didn't avert his steady gaze from Emily's eyes.

"And what about sex?"

Lorelai groaned, dropping her head against the table. Richard lifted a hand…"Emily…do you think this is fair? Maybe you could tone it down a bit…"

Emily gave him a polite, tight-lipped smile. "Don't you want to know what kind of guy you granddaughter is spending so much time with?"

Jess spoke up, answering the previous question, smirk still in place. "I've got no problem with sex."

Emily faltered. "I was asking if you have sex."

Jess feigned innocence. "I'm sorry. My mistake. And yes, to answer your question. I'm sure as hell not a virgin."

Rory squeaked as the table went into an uproar.

"Emily…this is not appropriate dinner talk."

"Why are you so fond of him, Richard?"

"He's a good kid. You can't tell me that when you were a teenager, you were perfect."

"No, not perfect…but I had morals. I was respectful towards adults and…"

Lorelai interrupted her parent's argument. "Mom, Dad…maybe we should just go. Sorry for the…just…sorry."

Rory set her fork and knife down, standing up. She tapped Jess on his shoulder, motioning for him to get up as well. "Let's go," she whispered in his ear.

He nodded, scooting his chair back and standing. "Nice to meet you Mr. Gilmore. Maybe you can show me that book another time." He offered his hand.

Richard shook it from across the table. "You too, Jess. I'll get in contact with Rory so we can set something up."

Emily threw her hands up. "This is unbelievable." She stomped out of the room, her heels clacking against the floor. Everyone stared after her, frowning.

Richard apologized. "I'm sorry for her behavior. She's just worried about Rory. She'll warm up to you eventually," he assured Jess.

Jess held back a snort. "I wouldn't count on it," he muttered, under his breath. Rory heard him and slapped his shoulder.

She gave her grandfather a hug before reaching for Jess' hand and making her way towards the door. Lorelai was waiting there, holding everyone's coats, a slight, 'I told ya so' expression on her face.

Rory rolled her eyes and grabbed her jacket, handing Jess his, as well.

Lorelai raised her eyebrows. "So…we're off…"

They nodded and followed Lorelai to the car in a slightly awkward silence. Lorelai turned to the tow teenagers walking at a slower pace behind her. "Rory…are you gonna ride with Jess or with me?"

Rory looked at both her mother and her boyfriend, unable to decide. She noticed that Jess looked a bit more…morose than usual…and figured that maybe he thought she was mad at him or something.

Her decision was made. Giving her mom an apologetic smile, she told her that she was going to go ahead with Jess.

Lorelai nodded, telling them to get straight home, and they agreed quietly.

She left in her car, throwing one nervous, backwards glance in their direction on her way out.

Jess sighed. "Ready to go?" He was leaning against the side of the car, much like he had been earlier that evening, but his expression was decidedly less cheerful.

Rory nodded, smiling slightly. "Yeah," she said quietly, matching his tone.

They each proceeded to their separate sides of the car, getting situated. He was just putting his keys in to turn the car on, when she stopped him. "Jess."

He hung his head before raising it a little to meet her eyes. "Yeah?"

She frowned when she noticed the lack of emotion in his voice. He sounded deflated. "Jess…" she prodded again. "What's wrong?"

He sighed and let his hand drop from the dashboard. "Nothing."

She pursed her lips at his stubbornness. "Jess, c'mon. Tell me what's bothering you."

"I'm sorry I said all that stuff."

Rory tilted her head. "You think I'm mad, don't you?"

He shrugged noncommittally. She put her hands on his shoulders, turning to face him. "I think you handled it well." She snickered. "At least the dinner went a little better than Dean's."

He almost cracked a smile at this. "Huh."

She grinned. "Yeah…and my grandpa really seems to like you…even after all that stuff. I can't believe he defended you…it was the complete opposite with Dean…Grandpa hated him."

Jess' face held a full-blown smirk by now. "That's cos' your grandpa has brains," he pointed out.

Rory nodded, still smiling. "I'll tell him you said that. But you do know I liked Dean at one point."

Jess grinned. "I'll forgive that little mistake in judgment on your part."

She playfully punched him in the arm. "Shut up."

"Ready to head back home now? Mom'll freak if you don't get me back soon."

Jess sighed, nodding. "You're probably right."

"I'm always right," Rory said proudly.

Jess snorted. "And I'm the queen of England."

* * *

**A/N: Yeah...that was long. :D Sorry for the wait...I really am. I just got my wisdom teeth pulled...and was loopy on narcotics for weeks...and then I went on vacation...so...here it is. :) Finally. :P**

**Reviews would be great...like...shirtless!Milo great. So...review...and I get the greatness equivalent to shirtless!Milo. I want it...and I always get what I want. No...I'm just tired...and it seemed to fit...but review away.**

**OH! New thing! I've decided to start responding to all signed reviews...so if you have any suggestions or questions or ideas...review with 'em. :D**

**I think that's finally it...Review...and the new chapter will be out. :P**


	10. Our Song

**A/N:** _Thanks to Maya and Trish for the help. :D_**

* * *

**

**Chapter 10- Our Song**

Luke frowned when he saw Jess pulling his jacket over his head as he entered the diner. He caught a glimpse of his bruised face, and threw the rag on the counter, sighing.

"Jess," he called. "Who did you get into a fight with?"

Jess raised his head, pursing his lips together. "No one," he replied, curtly.

Luke rolled his eyes. "Was it Dean? 'Cos if it was Dean, Rory's gonna be pissed."

Jess shook his head on his way to the curtain, leading to the apartment. "I didn't get into a fight."

"Then how the hell did you get that?" He pointed to the black eye and followed Jess up the stairs.

Luke marched up to Jess when he didn't answer. "C'mon, Jess. How bad can it be?"

Jess walked into the bathroom, Luke still on his heels. "Jess."

He turned, jaw clenched. "Luke."

Luke threw his hands in the air and groaned. "Jess, if you don't tell me right his second where the hell you got that black eye, I'm going to-"

"A swan!"

Luke dropped his hands and cocked his head. "Excuse me?"

"I was attacked by a swan. Okay, you happy? A stupid swan!"

Luke stifled a laugh. "Now, how 'bout the real story?"

"That is the real story. It hangs out by Larson's Dock. I was just walking by and the thing came out of nowhere and bam – beaked me right in the eye," Jess said angrily.

Luke attempted to make his face neutral. "It beaked you?"

Jess sighed. "You still don't believe me."

"I just never heard anyone use the word beaked as a verb before," he chuckled.

"No, no, this isn't funny. That stupid bird attacked me. He could've blinded me. It's a vicious, vicious bird, and...fine." He scowled. "Forget it."

Jess marched down the stairs of the diner and behind the counter. Bending down, he reached for a ladle, just as Luke was coming up behind him. "What are you doing? Where are you going?" He threw his arms up in exasperation.

Jess gave him a look. "I'm gonna do a little beaking of my own."

"Jess, not the ladle," Luke called out. "That's a brand new ladle. Take the baster!" He sighed, resigned, and followed him out the door.

-

-

-

Luke and Jess were on a rowboat out in the middle of the lake, Luke holding the oars, and Jess cradling the ladle in his hands threateningly.

"I don't see a swan."

"Put your oars down," Jess ordered.

Luke grinned. "They don't like oars?"

Jess let his gaze travel across the water. "Just lay low, it'll come," he promised.

"Does it act all peaceful and Bambi-like and then suddenly attack like the rabbit in Monty Python?"

"Your voice is probably scaring it away."

Luke attempted to make small talk as Jess raked the lake with his eyes one more time. "So…how's Rory doing?"

Jess shot him a confused frown. "You see her every morning. Ask her yourself."

Luke rolled his eyes. "No…I mean…with you. How are you and Rory doing? Together?"

Jess smirked. "Fine."

"Good, good. That's good, I guess." He wrung his hands awkwardly. "And the dinner last week?"

Jess raised his eyebrows. "Fine." He stretched the word out into two syllables.

"Good," Luke nodded. "How are you gonna explain the black eye?"

Jess frowned. "I dunno. Maybe I won't have to."

Luke shrugged. "You could tell her the truth."

Jess glared and pursed his lips, turning away from his uncle.

Luke rolled his eyes, and then squinted out into the distance. "Hey! I see a swan!"

"Where?"

Luke pointed towards the bird. "Right there."

Jess set him face into an intimidating scowl. "That's it. Watch it."

"I'm watching it. It's pretty."

Jess shushed him, turning his head towards the currently retreating swan angrily.

Luke chuckled. "Is it gonna double back?"

"Maybe."

"So it's lulling us into complacency," Luke said, biting back a grin.

Jess huffed. "He's vicious, I'm telling you."

"Yeah, his butt's terrifying."

-

-

-

"So, no packing crisis?" Rory asked.

Lorelai frowned and frantically waved her arms in the air. "No! Which is precisely the crisis! How can I not be panicking?"

Rory shrugged and sat on her mother's bed. "I dunno. Maybe you and Alex are so good together…that there's not a problem. I don't know why you'd freak out anyway…it's a weekend trip to New York. Not that big a deal."

Lorelai collapsed next to Rory. "I think I'm stressed."

"Why?"

She turned to look at her daughter. "Mainly you," she admitted.

Rory furrowed her brow. "Why are you worried about me? I'll be fine by myself."

"It's the 'by yourself' part I'm worried about," Lorelai muttered.

Rory bit her lip. "What you mean?"

Lorelai motioned around the room. "It's just…you and Jess are gonna be here…all alone, in this big, empty house."

"It's not that big," Rory interrupted.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Not the point. As I was saying; you two have been getting more serious lately, have you not?" At Rory's slow nod, she continued. "Add that to the fact that a month ago you told me you were thinking about having sex, and we've already got you all…'Pill-ed'…I'm concerned that something might happen when I'm gone." She frowned for a moment. "And I think I might have to break-up with Alex soon…he's just…not it, you know?"

She smiled at the thought. "Hey, maybe," she started brightly, "I can break up with Alex now, and I won't have to deal with the trip, and you…kills two birds with one stone."

Rory shook her head. "Mom," she warned. "You don't want to disappoint Sookie and Jackson, right? And you have a good time with Alex, even if he isn't the 'one'…just go on your trip, have lots of fun, and _trust me."_

Lorelai grinned. "Does that mean you aren't going to have sex?"

Rory didn't say anything, but lowered her eyes to the floor.

Lorelai groaned. "This isn't helping the whole, 'Leave now, Mom…trust me' situation you got going here."

"I can't promise we won't…because we might," she began, "but I can promise you that if we do, and that's a big _if_, we'll be safe. Extremely safe. Like…sliding into home plate safe," she promised. "And…I told you beforehand, right? Isn't that a good thing?"

Lorelai nodded, resigned. "I guess. There's nothing really I can do to stop you…you're eighteen, mature, you've thought it over, you're prepared…" She shrugged. "All that's left is for it to actually happen."

Rory impulsively hugged her mom. "I love you," she murmured against her neck.

Lorelai squeezed back, just as tightly. "I love you, too, Kiddo. I love you, too."

They stayed in the embrace for a moment, before the sound of the doorbell forced them to break apart. "Must be Alex," Lorelai said, getting up off the bed. She shouldered her bag and started heading out the door. She turned around. "I'd tell you to have fun, a kegger, bikers, the works…but I think the reality will be even worse, so I'll refrain."

Rory glared good-naturedly. "Have a good time…and bring me back a souvenir or something!"

Lorelai grinned. "See ya on Sunday. Bye, babe."

"Bye, mom."

They shared a smile before Lorelai made her way to the door.

Rory heard her mom talking to Alex form her position on the bed, and laid back, a content expression gracing her features. She'd missed those talks…and she was glad they could still have them; no matter how awkward the subject matter was. It was nice.

-

-

-

Rory set down her AP Psychology book with a heavy sigh. She risked a glance at her clock, and realized that she'd been studying for almost fours hours straight. She needed a break.

As if on cue, her stomach growled. She stood up and decided that a trip to Luke's would quell her need both for food and some downtime.

After a short ten minute walk to the diner, she opened the door, the bell signaling her entrance.

Luke waved a quick hello before heading into the kitchen. Rory sat down on a stool, and noticed that the diner was pretty empty; Kirk, an older couple, and a family who looked like they could be tourists having a quick dinner.

Her eyes snapped back to attention as someone went ahead pouring a mug of coffee in front of her. She looked up and frowned. "What happened to your eye?"

He shrugged, but otherwise gave no answer. She sighed. "Jess," she prodded. "Are you okay?"

He scowled. "I'm fine," he answered.

She glared. "What happened?"

"Look, Ror…it's no big deal. It wasn't a fight, if that's what you were wondering."

She frowned. "I wasn't gonna say that. I just wanted to know if you were alright. Is that wrong?"

He sighed. "No. Sorry, just hasn't been the best day."

"I get it." She gave him a sympathetic smile. "Hey…I have an idea…you wanna come over for a little while? Maybe watch a movie…or something?"

The butterflies in her stomach increases tenfold as she bit her lip shyly. He raised an eyebrow at her nervousness. "Sure. Let me go tell Luke I'm leaving."

She nodded and polished off the last of her coffee as he headed into the backroom. A minute later he returned.

She jumped off the stool and met him on her side of the counter. She grabbed his hand, and started defiantly started walking to the door. (And possibly, to something more...)

-

-

-

"So? Any suggestions for a movie tonight?" Rory began, tapping her hands anxiously against the back of the chair.

Jess shook his head slowly. "Not really. It doesn't matter to me." He frowned. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Rory nodded a bit too enthusiastically. "I'm fine, really," she assured him. She grinned nervously.

"Ror, what's up with you tonight?"

She bit her lip. "Nothing, nothing at all," she assured him. "It's just that it's a little weird with my mom being with Alex in New York…and Sookie and Jackson, too…and me being here all alone tonight…I'm not used to having the house to myself like this…the last time I did, actually was that night you came over with the food Luke sent over, and then Dean came over, and now you probably think I'm insane because I'm rambling on about my ex-boyfriend.." she trailed off with a frown as she noticed his amused smirk.

"What?" she pouted.

Jess shook his head, a smile still tugging at his lips. "Luke never sent the food over that night."

"What?" she repeated, bemused.

"Luke didn't send me to give you the food."

Rory's eyes widened. "It was you?"

At his nod, she laughed.

He raised a questioning eyebrow.

"I can't believe after that entire rant, all you have to say is, 'Luke never sent the food.' " She snorted, not able to believe it.

Jess shrugged. "Was there anything I was specifically supposed to hear?" he baited.

She faltered. "Well, no…not really, I guess. But I assumed, or…figured that…you know what? Never mind. I just gonna stop before I can embarrass myself any worse than I already have."

She giggled nervously as he held back a grin. "Don't worry about it. I think…"

"I'm on the Pill!" she blurted suddenly. She buried her head in her hands after the abrupt declaration.

His jaw dropped at her admission. "Uh," he began intelligently. "I…um, that's good?" It came out more like a question than a statement.

Jess shifted awkwardly on his feet as he noticed her entire face and neck turning bright crimson.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, almost inaudibly. "I…I think I'm going crazy or something. I totally wouldn't blame you if left and never came back."

He chuckled quietly. "No, I'm not going anywhere…if you don't want me to."

She shook her head at what could be two different meanings. She slowly brought her face back up, but couldn't make eye contact with Jess.

Jess sighed. "Rory, look at me."

She stayed in the same position. "Rory, c'mon. It's not a big deal."

"Sorry," she mumbled.

He rolled his eyes. "Don't apologize. You didn't do anything. Just please, Ror, let me see you."

He cupped her chin gently, but firmly and gazed intently into her nervous eyes. "I love you, you know that, right?"

She nodded. "Me, too," she said.

All of a sudden, she turned on her heel and started walking.

He followed her as she started making her way into another room. "Where're you going?" he asked, bewildered.

She reached the door to the bedroom and went straight in. The room was pretty dark, the only light coming in though the window.

He hesitated for only a second before going in, as well. "What are we doing in here?"

Rory looked at him defiantly. "C'mere," she beckoned.

He walked over to where she was standing next to the bed. "Rory?"

She nodded resolutely and pulled his head down for a kiss. It was hard and there teeth clashed almost painfully, but Jess understood her intentions.

He ducked away after a moment, hearing her whimper at the loss of contact.

Jess paused.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked. He released his hold on her a bit as he looked into her eyes.

She shook her head vehemently. "I'm sure," she said, breathlessly.

She pulled him closer and leaned forward for a kiss. Instead of his mouth, she let her lips linger on his bruised eye. "I'm sorry," she murmured.

He brought his hands up to her face and cupped her cheeks. "Don't be," he whispered, and finally caught her lips in a heated kiss.

He gently lowered her backwards onto her bed. Careful not to scare or intimidate her, he began slowly, only kissing the area around her neck, and not letting his hands wander into any uncharted territory.

She sighed into his mouth as she shakily moved her arms around his back, and as she gained more confidence, let the roam up and down his chest.

Jess started lifting the hem of her tee as he trailed hot, open-mouth kisses on her shoulder and her collarbone. She lifted her arms up, and helped him remove it.

He sucked in a breath as he took in the sight of her. Smooth, porcelain skin, untouched, perfect, and almost glowing in the low light. Her bra was simple light blue cotton, and his mind wandered unabated towards the image of her in matching underwear; he had to bite back a smile at the thought.

She groaned as he lowered her head to her chest, but deciding that fair was fair, she went for the bottom of his shirt. She tugged it off him hurriedly, and threw it off into some corner of the room. After a quick admiring of his toned torso, she let her head fall forward onto his shoulder as he returned his attentions to her.

She nibbled lightly on his neck before trailing her mouth lips down his chest and stomach. She paused at the band of his jeans, when she noticed the top of his boxers peaking out. When she gasped, as he raked his nails against her flat belly, the only thought going through her head was, "Here goes nothing."

-

-

-

Rory's breathing slowed down as she laid back down on the bed. Jess mirrored her position on the opposite side.

She let the stars clear as she let her gaze linger on a crack in her ceiling.

He kept sneaking glances at her, worried about...how it was.

She sighed contentedly, but blushed as she turned her head to see him looking at her. "Hi," she said, chewing in her bottom lip nervously.

"Hi," he repeated, a smiling curling at the corners of his lips. "So…"

"Yeah…" She looked away, before blurting out, "We need a song!"

"What?"

"Like…a song. Me and you…I'll turn the radio on, and the first song we hear, will be our song, the one that'll remind me of us…and this," she explained, trying to break the ice.

Jess nodded warily. "You sure that's a good idea? What if it's 'Ice Ice Baby'? Do you really want Vanilla Ice to be associated with this moment?"

Rory shook her head. "It won't be. The world wouldn't do that, would it?"

He laughed. "Try it, and see what happens."

She bent over his body to reach the stereo. After pressing a few buttons, a song came on.

They both froze for a second, trying to figure out what it was. Jess got it first.

"No way."

Rory frowned. "What is it? I don't think I know it."

"It's _Killing an Arab _by The Cure."

Rory's eyes widened. "Uh…do you think we should try again?" She reached back over towards the knob.

Jess frowned for a second. "Wait. Isn't this song based Albert Camus' book,_ The Stranger?" _

"The one about the really philosophical guy...who ends up shooting the…Arab, because the sun's too bright or something?"

Jess nodded. "Yeah…Essence of Chair, or something like that…Huxley, I think…"

Rory smiled. "So this song does work. It's a bit unconventional…"

He interrupted, "…Understatement of the year..."

She glared and continued. "But it fits us, right? The Cure, Huxley and philosophy all rolled into one?"

He shook his head in amusement. "If that's what you want, fine."

She grinned. "Good."

-

-

-

Jess woke up the next morning, not entirely sure where he was. He felt something wriggle next to him, and his eyes popped open in realization. Taking a quick look at the clock on the nightstand, he rushed out of bed, careful not to wake Rory. He saw his boxers half-way under the dresser, and threw them on as he searched for the rest of his clothes. He snatched up his shirt and pants, both in the same corner and hurriedly put them on, as well.

Running a hand through his hair, his gaze moved back to a sleeping Rory. She was lying on her stomach, covers half-way up her back and snoring softly.

He bent down and brushed a lock of hair off her cheek. She sighed faintly and her eyes slowly and reluctantly opened.

She blinked, confused for a few seconds before it hit her. She looked up and Jess, still standing above her and smiled. "Morning," she greeted quietly. Her voice was still scratchy from bed.

"Morning," Jess returned. Rory frowned when she noticed he was dressed.

"Where are you going?"

Jess pointed to the clock. "It's already seven-thirty."

Rory shrugged, pulling the sheets higher up against her. "So?"

"Luke..."

Rory interrupted. "...Can wait a little longer." She patted the space next to her on the bed. "Stay a little later," she pouted.

Jess opened his mouth to protest before suddenly closing it. His naked girlfriend wanted him back in bed…so be it for him to deprive her of that. He sat down next to her, letting his back rest against the headboard as Rory curled up into his chest. "Much better," she said, wrapping her arms around his waist, eyes shutting sleepily. "Much, _much_ better."

-

-

-

Rory smiled at the sight of a sleeping Jess against her bed. He dozed off a little after she did, and didn't wake when she got up to shower and get dressed. A quick look at the clock told her it was almost ten o'clock. Her mom would be getting back from New York in a few hours, and Luke was probably pissed as hell.

Oh, well. It was _definitely_ worth it.

She grinned at the thought and slowly walked over to the bed. Brushing his messy hair out of his eyes, she kissed him slowly. "Wake up, Jess."

He groaned and swatted her hand away. She giggled and rolled her eyes. "Jess," she tried again, "Time to really get up."

He frowned as his eyes opened slowly. "Morning, again," he croaked hoarsely.

Rory smiled. "Morning to you, too. But, it's ten o'clock and you were probably right when you said Luke was gonna get upset." She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry."

He smirked. "You were right…Luke can deal. What's three hours in the long run?"

-

-

-

Luke scowled when he noticed Jess trying to come into the diner unnoticed fifteen minutes later. After some not-so-innocent goodbyes, Jess made his way quickly from Rory's house, attempting to attract as little attention as possible.

As he arrived at the diner, the first sight greeting him was Luke pointing upstairs harshly; jaw clenched, and blue eyes piercing. "Up, now."

-

-

-

"Rory...Rory!"

Rory took a deep breath and made her way out of her room. She forced a smile. "Mom, hey! You're back!"

Lorelai grinned nervously. "Yup...I'm back...and...you are..."

"Yes," Rory interrupted quickly, head bowed.

Lorelai sucked in a breath and sat down on the couch, roping her bags to the floor. "Well, then. Um...congratulations?"

Rory sat down in a chair and frowned? "Congratulations?"

Lorelai threw her arms up in the air. "I don't know what I'm supposed to say! I can't really get mad at you, and I'm actually, surprisingly not, so that's out. I can't be like a girlfriend and ask for all the details..." She visibly shuddered. "...not that I would want them, anyway. So I'm left with trying to say something that doesn't sound lecture-y or stupid...and it ends up sounding wrong and awkward, which is just as bad."

Lorelai noticed Rory's mouth hanging open in shock. She gave her daughter a hesitant smile. "So...since I'm pretty sure we both want to end this conversation and totally forget it ever happened, I am going to ask one question before the topic is officially closed."

Rory nodded weakly. "Okay."

"So...on a scale from one to ten...how was it?" She grinned.

"Mom!"

-

-

-

"Hey, hun; what's wrong?"

Lorelai smiled at Sookie as she went to get herself a cup of coffee. Sookie, in the process of making up some type of fruit sauce was chopping up some strawberries.

"Rory."

Sookie stopped knife. "Is she alright? Hurt? Sick? Lorelai..."

"...Physically, she's fine," Lorelai interrupted. "Me, on the other hand...not so much."

Sookie resumed cutting. "What is it?"

Lorelai sighed. "You know how I was out of town this weekend, and Rory stayed home this weeked?"

Sookie nodded. "Yeah...but she does that a lot, right? What happened?"

"She's never done if when she was dating Jess."

Sookie frowned. "What does Jess have to do with..." She threw her arms up, slinging the knife in the process. It clattered harmlessly to the floor a few feet from the door. "Oh, my," she cried. "Our little popcorn's been popped!"

Lorelai glared. "Thank you."

Sookie shrugged. "Sorry."

"Right," Lorelai pouted, sipping her coffee. "That's just what I needed to heat right now. Never going to be able to eat popcorn again."

* * *

**A/N:** _Sorry it took so long! Lots of stuff...school, friends, vacation...laziness. p_

_Anyway...here it is. :D And it's be great if you'd review. I'm really nervous about this chapter...and any reassurances would be awesome. :)_

_Thanks!_


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